title: Detection of Merkel cell polyomavirus in chronic lymphocytic leukemia T-cells.
abstract: Chronic lymphocytic leukemia/small cell lymphoma (CLL/SLL) is the most common B-cell leukemia/lymphoma, effecting >15,000 patients/year. There has been a proposed limited antigenic etiology, at least in some cases, of CLL/SLL based upon immunoglobulin heavy chain stereotypy found across unrelated cases, suggesting viral source may provide such antigenic stimulation. With an established epidemiological link between CLL/SLL and Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC), there has been some interest in investigating a possible leukemogenic role of Merkel cell polyomavirus (MCPyV), which is found in 80% of MCC cases. Recent studies have shown that MCPyV is present in lymphocytes in a small percentage of CLL/SLL cases, but the specific tropism for lymphocytes has not been well-established. In this study, we used quantitative PCR to investigate the presence of MCPyV in fluorescence activated cell sorted purified B- and T-cells from 23 CLL/SLL cases. Three of 23 cases (13%) had detectable MCPyV in T-cells, and none of the cases had detectable MCPyV in B-cells. These findings suggest that MCPyV may have tropism for T-cells in addition to previously reported neoplastic B-cells.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology and Immunology, Division of Anatomic and Molecular Pathology, Washington University, Saint Louis, MO, United States. PCimino@path.wustl.edu
authors.forename: Patrick J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Cimino
authors.forename: David W
authors.initials: DW
authors.lastname: Bahler
authors.forename: Eric J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Duncavage
mesh_terms: D001402:B-Lymphocytes / Q000821:virology; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000032:analysis; D006801:Humans; D015451:Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell / Q000097:blood / Q000821:virology*; D059965:Merkel cell polyomavirus / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D027601:Polyomavirus Infections / Q000821:virology; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000821:virology*; D014412:Tumor Virus Infections / Q000821:virology
chemical_list: D004279:DNA, Viral