A case of viral warts with particular fibrillar intracytoplasmic inclusion bodies

[HPV-associated cutaneous lesions]

More than 100 HPV genotypes are presently distinguished by comparing the DNA sequence of the L1 ORF of each HPV. Two important aspects of the nature of this group of heterogeneous viruses are the way in which specific HPV genotypes are associated with distinct clinical and histological morphologies and the way specific HPV genotypes affect distinct anatomical sites. The former is best evidenced by the HPV type specific cytopathic or cytopathogenic effect (CPE), whereas the latter is suggested by the marked preference of each HPV genotype for specific tissues and sites. Recent studies have also suggested that specific HPV genotypes may target epithelial stem cells at specific anatomical sites. HPV type-specific CPE is the central schema when we analyze and understand the HPV-associated diseases. The concept was suggested by the characterization of distinct HPVs from different types of warts: HPV 2/27/57 from common warts, HPV 3/10/28 from flat warts, HPV 6/11 from condyloma acuminatum, and HPV 5/8 from lesions of epidermodysplasia verruciformis (EV). In this paper, I summarize recent advances in HPV study field, especially on HPV-associated cutaneous lesions. These include inclusion warts, HPV-associated epidermoid cysts, HPV type specific activation of melanogenesis, a double infection with HPV 1 and HPV 63 within a single cell, primary target cells and life cycle of the virus, and the identification of novel genes that are associated EV. The HPV-associated cutaneous lesions thus pose important problems to be resolved in virology and human pathology.

Life cycle heterogeneity in animal models of human papillomavirus-associated disease

Animal papillomaviruses are widely used as models to study papillomavirus infection in humans despite differences in genome organization and tissue tropism. Here, we have investigated the extent to which animal models of papillomavirus infection resemble human disease by comparing the life cycles of 10 different papillomavirus types. Three phases in the life cycles of all viruses were apparent using antibodies that distinguish between early events, the onset of viral genome amplification, and the expression of capsid proteins. The initiation of these phases follows a highly ordered pattern that appears important for the production of virus particles. The viruses examined included canine oral papillomavirus, rabbit oral papillomavirus (ROPV), cottontail rabbit papillomavirus (CRPV), bovine papillomavirus type 1, and human papillomavirus types 1, 2, 11, and 16. Each papillomavirus type showed a distinctive gene expression pattern that could be explained in part by differences in tissue tropism, transmission route, and persistence. As the timing of life cycle events affects the accessibility of viral antigens to the immune system, the ideal model system should resemble human mucosal infection if vaccine design is to be effective. Of the model systems examined here, only ROPV had a tissue tropism and a life cycle organization that resembled those of the human mucosal types. ROPV appears most appropriate for studies of the life cycles of mucosal papillomavirus types and for the development of prophylactic vaccines. The persistence of abortive infections caused by CRPV offers advantages for the development of therapeutic vaccines.