Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42503644›Full record

ArticleOncoimmunology2026

Characterization of persistent HPV-specific activated T cells in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.

Hiromasa Ishihara, Hirofumi Shibata, Daisuke Muraoka, Ayako Demachi-Okamura, Takanari Okamoto, Ryo Mizuta, Yasunori Fukushima, Yusuke Sugita, Aiko Ogasawara, Reina Nishida and 11 more

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Article in Oncoimmunology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

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2 · The registry

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3 · Its place in the literature

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4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

21 authors.

Hiromasa IshiharaDivision of Translational Oncoimmunology, Aichi Cancer Center Research Institute, Nagoya, Japan.
Hirofumi ShibataDepartment of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Gifu University Graduate School of Medicine, Gifu, Japan.
Daisuke MuraokaDivision of Translational Oncoimmunology, Aichi Cancer Center Research Institute, Nagoya, Japan.
Ayako Demachi-OkamuraDivision of Translational Oncoimmunology, Aichi Cancer Center Research Institute, Nagoya, Japan.
Takanari OkamotoDivision of Translational Oncoimmunology, Aichi Cancer Center Research Institute, Nagoya, Japan.
Ryo MizutaDivision of Translational Oncoimmunology, Aichi Cancer Center Research Institute, Nagoya, Japan.
Yasunori FukushimaDivision of Translational Oncoimmunology, Aichi Cancer Center Research Institute, Nagoya, Japan.
Yusuke SugitaDivision of Translational Oncoimmunology, Aichi Cancer Center Research Institute, Nagoya, Japan.
Aiko OgasawaraDivision of Translational Oncoimmunology, Aichi Cancer Center Research Institute, Nagoya, Japan.
Reina NishidaDivision of Translational Oncoimmunology, Aichi Cancer Center Research Institute, Nagoya, Japan.
Shintaro BeppuDepartment of Head and Neck Surgery, Aichi Cancer Center Hospital, Nagoya, Japan.
Hoshino TeradaDepartment of Head and Neck Surgery, Aichi Cancer Center Hospital, Nagoya, Japan.
Daisuke NishikawaDepartment of Head and Neck Surgery, Aichi Cancer Center Hospital, Nagoya, Japan.
Hidenori SuzukiDepartment of Head and Neck Surgery, Aichi Cancer Center Hospital, Nagoya, Japan.
Katsuhiro MasagoDepartment of Pathology and Molecular Diagnostics, Aichi Cancer Center Hospital, Nagoya, Japan.
Eiichi SasakiDepartment of Pathology and Molecular Diagnostics, Aichi Cancer Center Hospital, Nagoya, Japan.
Noriaki SakakuraDepartment of Thoracic Surgery, Aichi Cancer Center Hospital, Nagoya, Japan.
Rui YamaguchiDivision of Cancer Systems Biology, Aichi Cancer Center Research Institute, Nagoya, Japan.
Nobuhiro HanaiDepartment of Head and Neck Surgery, Aichi Cancer Center Hospital, Nagoya, Japan.
Takenori OgawaDepartment of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Gifu University Graduate School of Medicine, Gifu, Japan.
Hirokazu MatsushitaDivision of Translational Oncoimmunology, Aichi Cancer Center Research Institute, Nagoya, Japan.ORCID 0000-0001-9069-7160

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundHuman papillomavirus-positive oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (HPV + OPSCC) generally has favorable outcomes yet remains prone to late recurrence. Durable control likely depends on persistent tumor-specific CD8+ T cells, but their persistence and function in metastasis are poorly understood.

methodsWe integrated bulk RNA sequencing (

resultsHPV + tumors showed higher inferred CD8+ T cell infiltration and more favorable prognosis than HPV- tumors. Single-cell analysis revealed oligoclonally expanded exhausted clusters enriched in HPV tumor-specific CD8+ T cells. We isolated and functionally validated nine patient-derived HPV16 E6/E7-specific TCRs. High-avidity receptors recognizing an alternatively spliced region in E6 (aa 49-110; E6*) persisted in metastatic lesions, whereas lower-avidity clones, including an E7_11-19-specific TCR currently under clinical investigation, were lost. Compared with the primary tumor, metastatic lesions showed reduced stem-like/TCF7-associated CD8+ T-cell populations and enrichment of HPV-specific CD8+ T cells expressing

conclusionsHigh-avidity,

Indexed as

CD8-Positive T-LymphocytesHead and Neck NeoplasmsHuman papillomavirus 16Lymphocytes, Tumor-InfiltratingPapillomavirus InfectionsSquamous Cell Carcinoma of Head and NeckAgedFemaleHumansLymphocyte ActivationMaleMiddle AgedNK Cell Lectin-Like Receptor Subfamily BOncogene Proteins, ViralPapillomavirus E7 ProteinsReceptors, Antigen, T-CellE6 protein, Human papillomavirus type 16KLRB1 protein, humanNK Cell Lectin-Like Receptor Subfamily Boncogene protein E7, Human papillomavirus type 16Oncogene Proteins, ViralPapillomavirus E7 ProteinsReceptors, Antigen, T-CellRepressor ProteinsCD8+ T cellsHPV-positive oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomaimmunotherapyKLRB1(CD161)single-cell RNA sequencingT-cell receptor sequencing

Identifiers

PMID42503644
PMCPMC13418702

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.