[Ultrastructural demonstration of the human papilloma virus (HPV) in oral proliferative lesions]

Abstract

The Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) has been found in a series of benign proliferative lesions of the skin and mucosa. The virus has also been found in verrucous laryngeal carcinoma and carcinomas of the oral cavity and other organs. DNA hybridization techniques have made it possible to classify 51 types of HPVs, some appearing to be associated with specific lesions. In order to study the intracellular distribution of HPVs, an ultrastructural morphological analysis was performed with an electron microscope on 10 specimens taken from 5 patients. The specimens were obtained through large excisional biopsy, histologically classified as "fibropapilloma". For each patient specimens were taken from the clinically evident lesion and from the surrounding clinically normal mucosa. The specimens were fixed in glyceraldehyde, washed in a cacodylate buffer, post-fixed in potassium ferrocyanide reduced-osmium tetroxide, stained with uranyl acetate and included in EPON 812. The tissue was subjected to amylase digestion prior to electron microscope examination. A great number of viral particles were found in both the nucleus and the cytoplasm, without forming crystal array structures as typically described for the verruca vulgaris virus (HPV-2). No significant differences could be found between the cells derived from the clinical lesion and those derived from the surrounding mucosa. The passage of viral particles from infected to as yet uninfected cells through the intercellular space could be seen. The high intracytoplasmatic presence of the virus, and its clear abundance in those cells surrounding the clinical lesion, is felt to be of special interest.