2B–E). The structural integrity of VLPs is required for killing and cytokine secretion functions, since heating disruption of VLPs (95°C condition) decreased both activities (Fig. 2C and E). Internalization of HPV–VLPs in DCs has been shown to induce their activation 22, but it is unknown whether the virus could also specifically enter

into NK cells. Therefore, we investigated VLP uptake by NK cells using CFSE-labeled VLPs. CFSE is a marker that becomes fluorescent only after the removal of the acetate groups by cellular serine esterase, i.e. inside the cells learn more 23. We performed a kinetic study with CFSE–VLPs at 37°C on NK, CasKi cells and DCs. We observed a weaker fluorescence in NK cells compared with CasKi, although the fluorescence in selleck chemical NK cells reached a plateau very quickly (after 10 min) (Fig. 3A). We also compared the entry into DCs and NK cells derived from the same donor. After 10 min of incubation, we observed a higher fluorescence in NK cells compared with DCs (Fig. 3B). This uptake was not restricted to VLPs from

HPV16, since the VLP entry into NK cells was similar with HPV31– and HPV16–VLPs (Supporting Information Fig. 2A). The VLP entry seemed to require an active process because entry did not occur at 4°C (Supporting Information Fig. 2B). When the VLP structure was disrupted by heating at 95°C, the resulting fluorescence intensity in NK cells was significantly decreased, suggesting that the conformation of VLPs is important for the process of internalization (Supporting Information Fig. 2B). In order to visualize the entry of VLPs into NK cells, we performed confocal and electron microscopy analyses (Fig. 4). Carnitine palmitoyltransferase II We detected fluorescent VLPs in few large fluorescence spots inside NK cells after 10 min of VLP incubation at 37°C (Fig. 4A) but not in DCs or in CasKi cells (data not shown). After 5 h of incubation, VLPs were observed as being dispersed in the cytoplasm of DCs (Fig. 4B) and of CasKi cells (Fig. 4C). This VLP distribution was not observed in NK cells; even after 10 h of incubation, VLPs were still contained in few large vesicles. Electron microscopy

experiments were performed on NK cells incubated with VLPs (Fig. 4D–F). VLPs were present in large vacuoles (mean diameter: 0.24±0.14 μm, n=22) after 10 min of incubation (Fig. 4D). Similar observations were made after 6 to 18 h and fusion of these vacuoles with the nucleus was not observed (data not shown). At a longer incubation period (18 h), we noticed very large vacuoles, which could come from fusion of smaller vesicles and where VLPs seemed partially degraded (Fig. 4E). We did not observe clathrin-coated vesicles containing VLPs in NK cells as observed in DCs (Fig. 4F) where the vacuole size was smaller (mean diameter: 0.12±0.3 μm, n=6). The membrane ruffles observed by electron microscopy of NK cells in the presence of VLPs (Fig.