ABSTRACT

Sequence homology between SARS-CoV-2 and common-cold human coronaviruses (HCoVs) raises the possibility that memory responses to prior HCoV infection can impact T cell response in COVID-19. We studied T cell responses to SARS-CoV-2 and HCoVs in convalescent COVID-19 donors and identified a highly-conserved SARS-CoV-2 sequence S811-831, with overlapping epitopes presented by common MHC-II proteins HLA-DQ5 and HLA-DP4. These epitopes are recognized by low-abundance CD4 T cells from convalescent COVID-19 donors, mRNA vaccine recipients, and uninfected donors. TCR sequencing revealed a diverse repertoire with public TCRs. T cell cross-reactivity is driven by the high conservation across human and animal coronaviruses of T cell contact residues in both HLA-DQ5 and HLA-DP4 binding frames, with distinct patterns of HCoV cross-reactivity explained by MHC-II binding preferences and substitutions at secondary TCR contact sites. These data highlight S811-831 as a highly-conserved CD4 T cell epitope broadly recognized across human populations.

Fuente: Cell Reports
Available online 27 May 2022

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