Type specificity and significance of different isotypes of serum antibodies to human papillomavirus capsids.

Isotype-specific serum antibody responses against human papillomavirus (HPV) type 16 were evaluated by use of cross-sectional, prospective, and population-based seroepidemiologic studies. IgG1 and IgA were the most abundant isotypes. No sample contained IgG2, and <25 samples contained IgG3 or IgM. Total IgG, IgA, and IgG1 were HPV type specific and were associated with HPV-16 DNA (odds ratios [ORs], 5.4, 5.0, and 5.9, respectively; P<.001) but not with other HPV DNA (ORs, 1.2, 1.2, and 0.8, respectively; P value was not significant). Total IgG and IgG1 were strongly associated with number of lifetime sex partners (P<.001); IgA was only associated with number of recent sex partners and lifetime sex partners among younger women. Total IgG, IgG1, and IgA were associated with cervical intraepithelial neoplasia type III and also predicted risk of future cervical neoplasia. IgG and IgG1 appeared to mark lifetime cumulative exposure, whereas IgA may mark recent or ongoing infection.