HPV E7 Proteins

Encoded in the early region of the HPV genome alongside E6, E7 is the transforming oncoprotein driving cell-cycle deregulation. Its conserved regions CR1, CR2, and CR3 fold into a zinc-binding dimer, and the LXCXE motif within CR2 docks onto the retinoblastoma tumor suppressor pRb and relatives p107/p130. High-risk E7 directs pRb degradation through a cullin-2 ubiquitin ligase complex, freeing E2F transcription factors and pushing quiescent keratinocytes into S phase, permitting viral genome amplification in differentiating epithelium. E7 additionally neutralizes the CDK inhibitors p21 and p27, recruits histone deacetylases, and induces centrosome abnormalities promoting genomic instability. Since p16 overexpression marks E7 activity, the protein is central to cervical cancer screening and therapeutic vaccine development.