title: Core classification of head and neck squamous cell carcinomas: correlations between morphology, DNA ploidy and HPV infection.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The study intended to reveal whether HPV infection is reflected by nuclear morphology and DNA cytometry parameters in head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCC).
  
  
  METHODS
  In total, 39 HNSCC were selected for reanalysis by histomorphology applying the core classification, DNA cytometry and HPV detection. For the core classification, HE sections were assessed by a score system to evaluate the nuclear size, the mitosis size, their variabilities and the presence of tripolar or tetrapolar mitoses. HPV was analyzed by consensus PCR followed by a hybridization method for virus typing. Static DNA cytometry was applied on single cell suspension focusing particularly on the parameters DNA modal value, DNA index peak, DNA index mean, 2c deviation index and 5c exceeding rate. Statistical analysis was done by T-test or Fisher's exact test.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The analysis revealed that HPV positive HNSCC had significantly smaller nuclei than HPV negative cases. Increasing values of the nuclear size and mitosis size were significantly associated with higher indices of the DNA cytometry analysis.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The study confirms that the core classification can provide information on the ploidy of HNSCC and that HPV positive tumors represent a distinct morphological and genetic carcinoma subtype.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Pathology, Charité Campus Mitte, Charitéplatz 1, 10117 Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: Waleed F M Amin
authors.initials: WF
authors.lastname: Kotb
authors.forename: Christiane
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Blind
authors.forename: Karl-Heinz
authors.initials: KH
authors.lastname: Friedrich
authors.forename: Christiane
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Schewe
authors.forename: Zhi Gang
authors.initials: ZG
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Jian Ming
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Zheng
authors.forename: Nicole
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Deutschman
authors.forename: Manuela
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Pacyna-Gengelbach
authors.forename: Manfred
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Dietel
authors.forename: Iver
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Petersen
mesh_terms: D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics / Q000821:virology; D002467:Cell Nucleus / Q000473:pathology; D004273:DNA, Neoplasm / Q000235:genetics*; D006258:Head and Neck Neoplasms / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics / Q000821:virology; D006801:Humans; D019044:Image Cytometry / Q000379:methods; D008938:Mitosis; D027383:Papillomaviridae / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D030361:Papillomavirus Infections / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics / Q000821:virology; D011003:Ploidies
chemical_list: D004273:DNA, Neoplasm