Correction to: Oncogene (2008) 27, 1071–1078; doi:10.1038/sj.onc.1210725; published online 20 August 2007

Our recent publication was based on the analysis of E6/E7-immortalized human cervical cell lines that were transduced with the wild-type HPV-16 E5 gene (or pLXSN empty expression vector) and analysed after selection and continued passaging. As these established cell lines were generated from the outgrowth of large, polyclonal cell populations, they were believed to reflect the general cellular characteristics of E5 expression. However, in follow-up studies, we have not observed significant increases of surface GM1 in early-passage E5-transduced cervical cells. This indicates that overexpression of GM1 (and possibly caveolin) at the plasma membrane is not an immediate consequence of E5 expression and therefore may not mediate the postulated acute effects of E5 on cell growth and immune evasion.