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Background: The purpose of this study was to determine prospectively both human papillomavirus (HPV) load and physical status in different types of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC)., Methods: HPV DNA, E6/E7 mRNA expression, viral load, and physical status of 184 patients with HNSCC were examined simultaneously by polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based methods., Results: The HPV genome was detected in 54 HNSCC samples (29.3%), particularly in tonsillar carcinomas (69.6%). Compared with nonoropharyngeal HNSCC, oropharyngeal carcinoma harbored a relatively higher viral load, especially in tonsillar carcinoma. Although integrated or mixed status was observed in 75.6% of HPV-16-positive samples, E6/E7 mRNA transcripts were detected in only 27.5% of HPV DNA-positive cases. High HPV-16 load correlated significantly with E6/E7 mRNA expression., Conclusion: E6/E7 mRNA expression in patients with HNSCC with low viral load remains low even in cases of integration to the host genome. Tonsillar carcinomas were significantly associated with HPV among various types of HNSCC., (Copyright © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

Background: This study investigated prospectively the role of human papillomavirus (HPV) in paranasal inverted papilloma (IP)., Methods: HPV presence and viral load and physical status of HPV-16 were examined by polymerase chain reaction-based methods using fresh frozen samples obtained from 13 patients with IP (IP group), 11 with squamous cell carcinoma in the maxillary sinus (SCC group) and 39 with chronic inflammatory lesions (inflammatory group)., Results: The presence of the HPV genome was detected in 46.1%, 27.3% and 7.6% of patients in the IP, SCC and inflammatory groups, respectively. The IP group showed significantly higher HPV-positive rates than the inflammatory group. All types of HPV detected were high-risk HPV, especially HPV-16. The relative HPV-16 copy numbers varied from 2.5 to 1524.1 per 50 ng genomic DNA. The viral load was higher in the IP and SCC groups than in the inflammatory group. In the IP group, no significant relationship was found between HPV-16 viral load and clinical characteristics, or between physical status and clinical characteristics. One patient with IP and concomitant squamous cell carcinoma, however, showed high viral load and integration., Conclusions: HPV infection is involved in the pathogenesis of IP, and high viral load and integration of HPV have an important role in malignant lesion in association with IP.

Recurrent respiratory papillomatosis (RRP) has a wide range of severity. We investigate the relationship between human papillomavirus (HPV) particle production and severity of RRP. From September 2005 to June 2021, 68 RRP samples (from 29 patients) were included. HPV type was determined. HPV viral load, physical status, and demographic and clinical characteristics were assessed. Immunohistochemistry (IHC) was performed for p16, Ki-67, L1, and E4. We used NanoSuit-CLEM (correlative light and electron microscopy) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) to examine the samples. The total number of surgeries in HPV-positive and HPV-negative cases were 3.78 (n = 55/68, range: 1–16) and 1.30 (n = 13/68, range: 1–3), respectively (p = 0.02). IHC showed that L1 and E4 were correlated and expressed on the tumour surface. NanoSuit-CLEM and TEM revealed HPV particles in L1-positive nuclei. L1 IHC-positive cases had a shorter surgical interval (p < 0.01) and more frequent surgeries (p = 0.04). P16 IHC, viral load, and physical status were not associated with disease severity. This study visualised HPV particle production in RRP for the first time. Persistent HPV particle infection was associated with severity. We suggest L1 IHC for evaluating RRP severity in addition to the Derkay score. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High-risk human papillomavirus (HPV) DNA has been reported to be present in branchial cleft cysts, but further information is required to clarify the role of HPV infection in branchial cleft cysts. The presence of HPV, the viral load and the physical statuses in samples from six patients with branchial cleft cysts were investigated using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR), quantitative PCR, in situ hybridization (ISH) using HPV DNA probes and p16INK4a immunohistochemical analysis. High-risk type HPV-16 DNA was identified in four of the six branchial cleft cysts analyzed. Of the HPV-positive branchial cleft cysts, three exhibited mixed-type integration of HPV. HPV DNA was distributed among the basal-to-granular layers of the cystic wall in ISH analysis, and p16INK4a was weakly expressed in the nuclei and cytoplasm of the same layers in patients with integration. ISH revealed that one patient with episomal-type infection exhibited HPV DNA in the cyst wall and did not express p16INK4a. Two patients without evidence of HPV infection exhibited weak p16INK4a expression in the superficial cyst-lining cells of branchial cleft cysts. These results indicate that infection with high-risk HPV types may be common in branchial cleft cysts. In addition, p16INK4a is not a reliable surrogate marker for HPV infection in branchial cleft cysts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Laryngeal papilloma (LP) associated with human papillomavirus (HPV)-6 or -11 infection shows aggressive growth. However, the detailed molecular mechanism of virus-driven tumorigenesis has not been uncovered fully. HPV-6 viral gene expression and dynamic alterations were investigated with in situ localization of viral DNA and RNA in 13 patients with HPV-6-infected laryngeal papilloma. The average viral load was 4.80 × 105 ± 1.86 × 105 copies/ng DNA. E4, E5a, and E5b mRNAs accounted for 96% of the expression of 9 mRNAs. The alteration of viral DNA load during recurrence paralleled the mRNA expression levels, and the expression of all mRNAs showed a similar curve. E4, E5a, and E5b were expressed in the middle to upper part of the epithelium and were co-expressed in the same cells. E4 immunohistochemistry demonstrated an extensively positive reaction in the upper cell layer in accordance with E4 mRNA expression. These results suggest that individual viral genes are coordinately expressed for viral replication, virus release, and immunosurveillance avoidance. The newly developed E4-specific monoclonal antibody can be applied to further functional studies and clinical applications such as targeted molecular therapies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]