Analisi del ruolo dei papillomavirus nelle lesioni precancerose della laringe

Many evidences show that human papillomaviruses (HPV) are etiologically implicated in both human cancer and in premalignant mucosal lesions of the oral cavity. The aim of this paper is to give prominence to the relationships between HPV infection and some pathological features in precancerous lesions of the larynx. Sixty-two formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissue sections, containing human laryngeal precancerous lesions, were screened for the presence of HPV infection by polymerase chain reaction, and for capsid protein expression by immunohistochemistry with a polyclonal antibody against the L1 capsid protein. HPV DNA has been detected in 36 of 62 specimens (58%), including 10/14 cases with mild dysplasia (71%), 4/8 cases with moderate dysplasia (50%), and 10/15 cases with severe dysplasia (67%). Of 25 cases with keratosis without dysplasia, 50% was HPV DNA positive and only 6 were positive for L1 staining. L1 positivity was never revealed in severe dysplasia. This is consistent with the fact that fully productive HPV infection is strictly dependent on epithelial differentiation and surface keratinization.