Human papillomavirus (HPV) infections are related to the genesis of various
benign and malignant human neoplasias. The HPV types 16 and 18 seem to be
causally related to the development of most squamous cell carcinoma of the
anogenital tract and a proportion of carcinomas of the upper aerodigestive
tract. The near 100% positivity of the HPV types 6 and II in laryngeal papi
llomatosis is well established. We investigated a whether HPV also plays a
role in non-neoplastic mucosal entities such as sinunasal polyposis, the ge
nesis of which has been discussed as being triggered by viral infections. O
n DNA from 39 sinunasal polps (33 patients). polymerase chain reaction (PCR
) was performed using beta -globin primers for demonstration of amplifiable
DNA in the tissue extracts. Consensus primers fur the detection of several
different HPV types were applied to the beta -globin-positive samples. The
results were confirmed by Southern blot hybridization using consensus prob
es. Cycle sequencing was performed on the positive cases. All 39 samples sh
owed positive signals for beta -globin. HPV-DNA investigations showed a sli
ght positive signal in only 1 of the 39 investigated cases (2.6%). Further
molecular investigations of this sample, including cycle sequencing, could
not confirm this result. All the other tissue samples remained HPV-DNA-nega
tive. Therefore: those HPV types readily detectable with the PCR primers an
d probes used are not frequently associated with sinunasal polyposis. The d
ata confirm the hypothesis that HPV is correlated to a lesser extent to inf
ectious mucosal lesions than to proliferative lesions. Furthermore, the res
ults emphasize that the presence of HPV in specific lesions does not occur
by chance, but represents a specific infection of the mucosa leading to pro
liferation and even to malignancy.