Transcription of human papillomavirus type-18 DNA in human cervical carcinoma cell lines.

Abstract

DNA of human papillomavirus (HPV) type 16 or 18 has been identified in about 70% of all human cervical carcinomas analyzed so far [1] and in cell lines established from cervical carcinomas [2, 3]. In the malignant tumors and all cell lines, DNA of HPV 16 or 18 is integrated into the host cell genome. Integration consistently results in disruption of the viral genome within the open reading frame (ORF) E1, E2 region. With regard to the host cell genome, however, HPV 16/18 DNA integration seems to occur at different sites in different tumors and cell lines. Since tissue culture systems susceptible to transformation by HPVs were not available, we used the three HPV 18-positive cervical carcinoma cell lines HeLa, C4-1, and SW756 for a comparative analysis of HPV 18 transcription.