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This observer-blind study (clinicaltrials.gov NCT01462357) compared the immunogenicity and safety of two doses (2D) of the HPV-16/18 AS04-adjuvanted vaccine (2D of AS04-HPV-16/18) vs. two or three doses of the 4vHPV vaccine [2D or 3D of 4vHPV] in 1075 healthy girls aged 9–14 years. Girls were randomized (1:1:1) to receive 2D of AS04-HPV-16/18 at months (M) 0, 6 (N = 359), 2D of 4vHPV at M0, 6 (N = 358) or 3D of 4vHPV at M0, 2, 6 (N = 358). 351, 339 and 346 girls, respectively, returned for the concluding visit at M36. Superiority was demonstrated at M7 and M12; comparison of the immune response to both vaccine antigens was made between 2D of AS04-HPV-16/18 and 2D or 3D of 4vHPV at subsequent time points in the according-to-protocol immunogenicity cohort (ATP-I; N = 958 at M36) and the total vaccinated cohort (TVC: N = 1036 at M36). HPV-16/18-specific T-cell- and B-cell-mediated immune responses and safety were also investigated. At M36, anti-HPV-16/18 ELISA responses in the 2D AS04-HPV-16/18 group remained superior to those of the 2D and 3D 4vHPV groups. In the M36 TVC, geometric mean titers were 2.78-fold (HPV-16) and 6.84-fold (HPV-18) higher for 2D of AS04-HPV-16/18 vs. 2D of 4vHPV and 2.3-fold (HPV-16) and 4.14-fold (HPV-18) higher vs. 3D of 4vHPV. Results were confirmed by vaccine pseudovirion-based neutralisation assay. Numbers of circulating CD4+ T cells and B cells appeared similar across groups. Safety was in line with the known safety profiles of both vaccines. In conclusion, superior HPV-16/18 antibody responses were elicited by 2D of the AS04-HPV-16/18 compared with 2D or 3D of the 4vHPV vaccine in girls aged 9–14 years. Clinical Trial Registration: NCT0146235 .

Peroxiredoxins (PRDXs) are a family of peroxidases well conserved throughout evolution. Human PRDX3 and PRDX5, two mitochondrial PRDXs, have been implicated in several pathologies associated with oxidative stress. However, the individual role of PRDX3 and PRDX5 in cellular antioxidant defense has never been well established due to their overlapping peroxidatic activities. We investigated the expression and function of mitochondrial PRDXs in human neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cells. Our results show that PRDX3 and PRDX5 are expressed constitutively in these neuronal cells. To examine further the function of mitochondrial PRDXs, we silenced the expression of PRDX3 and/or PRDX5 using small hairpin RNAs. Our results show that mitochondrial PRDX-depleted cells are more prone to oxidative damages and apoptosis induced by MPP(+), a complex I inhibitor which provides an experimental paradigm of Parkinson's disease.

Peroxiredoxin-5 (PRDX5) is an antioxidant enzyme which differs from the other peroxiredoxins with regards to its enzymatic mechanism, its high affinity for organic peroxides and peroxynitrite and its wide subcellular distribution. In particular, the mitochondrial isoform of PRDX5 confers a remarkable cytoprotection toward oxidative stress to mammalian cells. Mitochondrial dysfunction and disruption of Ca²⁺ homeostasis are implicated in neurodegeneration. Growing evidence supports that endoplasmic reticulum (ER) could operate in tandem with mitochondria to regulate intracellular Ca²⁺ fluxes in neurodegenerative processes. Here, we overexpressed mitochondrial PRDX5 in SH-SY5Y cells to dissect the role of this enzyme in 1-methyl-4-phenylpyridinium (MPP)⁺-induced cell death. Our data show that mitochondria-dependent apoptosis triggered by MPP⁺, assessed by the measurement of caspase-9 activation and mitochondrial DNA damage, is prevented by mitochondrial PRDX5 overexpression. Moreover, PRDX5 overexpression blocks the increase in intracellular Ca²⁺, Ca²⁺-dependent activation of calpains and Bax cleavage. Finally, using Ca²⁺ channel inhibitors (Nimodipine, Dantrolene and 2-APB), we show that Ca²⁺ release arises essentially from ER stores through 1,4,5-inositol-trisphosphate receptors (IP3 R). Altogether, our results suggest that the MPP⁺ mitochondrial pathway of apoptosis is regulated by mitochondrial PRDX5 in a process that could involve redox modulation of Ca²⁺ transporters via a crosstalk between mitochondria and ER.