Increased levels of human papillomavirus type 16 DNA in a subset of prostate cancers.
Whether oncogenic human papilloma viruses (HPVs) are involved in the pathogenesis of prostate cancers has been a subject of great controversy. To clarify the contradictory results of investigations, with the aim of detecting viral nucleic acids in prostate cancers, we have carried out a comparative quantitation of the HPV16-E6 sequence in 84 prostate specimens. Using single-tube quantitative competitive PCR, we characterized 47 prostate cancers and 37 control tissues of benign prostatic hyperplasia. A subgroup of the prostate tumors (10 of 47; 21%) was detected as having significantly higher copy numbers of HPV16-E6 sequences when compared to the control tissue (1 of 37; 3%), using a cutoff value of 300 copies per 12,500 diploid cells (two-sided Fisher's exact test, P = 0.02). Our results indicate that the oncogenic HPV16 might contribute to the development of a subset of prostate tumors.
Department of Urology, Hannover Medical School, Germany. Serth.juergen@mh-hannover.de
J
J
Serth
F
F
Panitz
U
U
Paeslack
M A
MA
Kuczyk
U
U
Jonas
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000032:analysis*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D027383:Papillomaviridae / Q000235:genetics*; D011470:Prostatic Hyperplasia / Q000821:virology; D011471:Prostatic Neoplasms / Q000821:virology*
D004279:DNA, Viral