Detection of human papillomavirus DNA in pterygia from different geographical regions

Abstract

Background/aims: The aetiology and pathogenesis of pterygia remain unclear and the involvement of human papillomavirus (HPV) is controversial. 41 pterygia from two geographic locations were evaluated for the presence of HPV DNA. Methods: 41 pterygium biopsies (17 from Italy and 24 from Ecuador) were analysed using the L1C1 and PU-1ML primer sets by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and DNA sequence analysis. Results: 22 of the 41 pterygia (54%) were positive for HPV, including all 17 Italian cases and 5/24 (21%) Ecuadorean cases. DNA sequencing of the 22 positive cases showed that 11 were HPV type 52, four were type 54, five were candHPV90, and two of unknown genotype. Conclusions: The major differences in the frequency of HPV in geographically distant populations might suggest a possible explanation for the vast differences in the reported detection rates. Three subtypes of HPV were found in this sample of pterygia. None the less, these results suggest that HPV may have a pathogenic role in pterygium.

Lack of papillomavirus (HPV) in pterygia of a Brazilian sample

“…Although HPV has been associated with pterygia in previous studies (3,(8)(9)(10)(11) , our findings do not show HPV positivity in either pterygium lesion or in normal conjunctiva.…”

“…Because some authors postulate a potential relationship between pterygia and neoplastic lesion, some studies about the positivity of oncogenic viruses, such as HPV and HSV in the lesion were performed (2)(3)(4)(5)(6) . However, HPV occurrence in pterygium lesion is still controversial and sometimes a positive correlation between pterygia and HPV infection has been reported (3,(7)(8)(9)(10)(11) , while other present negative results (4,12) . The present study was done with the purpose to evaluate whether HPV is involved in pterygium pathogenesis in our region.…”

“…In Canada HPV-16 was found in 100% of the sample of pterygia (9) and HPV occurred in a region of Turkey as a nonendemic infection and may be related to the development of pterygia in that region (10) . Comparing the HPV positivity in the patients with pterygium, the incidence of pterygia of Italian cases was 100% (17/17) but 21% (5/24) among Ecuadorian patients (11) . And in China the HPV in pterygium samples was 100% negative, the same seen in the Botucatu region (12) .…”

Detection of human papillomavirus in pterygium and conjunctival papilloma by hybrid capture II and PCR assays

“…A recent study has suggested that one possible explanation might be the geographical differences in the frequency of HPV involvement in pterygium. 4 However, in an investigation of a large number of pterygium cases, Sjö et al 9 concluded that the low presence of HPV (4/90; 4.4%) detected by PCR does not support the hypothesis that HPV is involved in the development of pterygium. Our data agree with this finding, and suggest that the level of HPV DNA in pterygium is low, implying that the presence of HPV is insufficient for the development of this tumour.…”

“…Although the aetiology of pterygium and papilloma has not been established, human papillomavirus (HPV) is thought to be one of the causative factors. [2][3][4][5] HPV is a family of double-stranded circular DNA viruses, of which more than 80 types have been identified. 6 HPVs have oncogenic potential and contribute to the progression of neoplastic conditions.…”