BLOOD DENDRITIC CELLS FROM MYELOMA PATIENTS ARE NOT INFECTED WITH KAPOSIS SARCOMA-ASSOCIATED HERPESVIRUS (KSHV HHV-8)/

In recent studies, the sequence of Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpes virus (KSHV) or human herpes virus-8 (HHV-8) was detected in dendritic cells (DC) of patients with multiple myeloma (MM). A concern was rais ed whether there is an causal association between the viral infection and development of these tumors. In the present study, we have examine d DC generated from blood adherent cells from 8 Swedish MM patients at different clinical stages and 2 patients with monoclonal gammopathy o f undetermined significance. In addition, 6 myeloma cell lines and bon e marrow cells from 2 MM patients were also studied. By polymerase cha in reaction (PCR), including nested PCR, no virus DNA was demonstrable in the patients' DC or in myeloma cell lines or fresh bone marrow cel ls. Moreover, no antibody against KSHV was found in the serum of these 10 patients. Thus, our results indicate that blood-derived DC of MM p atients in Sweden usually are not infected with KSHV/HHV-8. This study also suggests that KSHV/HHV-8 is not regularly associated with MM and consequently does not play a primary role in the pathogenesis of thes e tumors. (C) 1998 by The American Society of Hematology.