Antibodies against papillomavirus antigens in cervical secretions from condyloma patients.

Samples of cervical secretions and serum from 30 women with genital condylomas and 30 age-matched controls were tested for the presence of immunoglobulin A (IgA) and IgG antibodies against a panel of papillomavirus-derived antigens. The same cervical samples were also analyzed for presence of human papillomavirus (HPV) DNA by Southern blotting and polymerase chain reaction. By Southern blotting HPV DNA was detected in 8 of 30 patients with condylomas and 2 of 30 controls, and by the polymerase chain reaction HPV DNA was detected in 14 of 30 patients with condylomas and 5 of 30 controls. A total of 18 of 29 patients with condylomas and 8 of 28 controls had IgA antibodies in cervical secretions to an E2 synthetic peptide, and 17 of 29 patients with condylomas and 5 of 28 controls had local IgA antibodies to an E7 peptide (P < 0.025 and P < 0.005, respectively). The results suggest that measurement of local antibody production against selected HPV antigens may be useful in the study of HPV immunology and, possibly, for the diagnosis of HPV infection.