Elsevier

Human Pathology

Volume 25, Issue 4, April 1994, Pages 343-348
Human Pathology

Original contribution
Induction of proliferating cell nuclear antigen in differentiated keratinocytes of human papillomavirus-infected lesions

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Abstract

The expression of proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) was studied in human papillomavirus (HPV)-infected, benign and malignant lesions of the genital tract and larynx using immunocytochemical staining of formalin-fixed clinical specimens. We observed the induction of PCNA in squamous carcinomas and adenocarcinomas, as has been demonstrated with other malignancies. In addition, the differentiated keratinocytes of the upper spinous cells and granulocytes in condylomata acuminata and low-grade intraepithelial neoplasias showed a consistent induction of PCNA compared with the normal squamous epithelium, in which only some of the parabasal and basal cells were positive. This reactivation of PCNA synthesis correlated with the presence of high copy numbers of HPV DNA and was independent of the oncogenic risk potential of the infecting HPV genotype. We postulate that HPV gene products induce the expression of PCNA and other components of the host DNA replication machinery in differentiated cells of squamous lesions to facilitate vegetative viral replication.

Keywords

proliferating cell nuclear antigen
human papillomavirus
DNA replication
condyloma acuminatum
cervical neoplasms
in situ hybridization
immunocytochemistry

Cited by (0)

Supported by US Public Health Service research grant no. CA 43629. L.M.D. is a recipient of a James Wilmot Cancer Research Fellowship.

Present address: Department of Pathology, University of Virginia Health Sciences Center, Charlottesville, VA.