Hajime Ogura

Human papillomavirus as a risk factor for head and neck cancers--a case-control study.

A retrospective, case-control study was conducted to examine the relationship between the presence of human papillomavirus types 16 and 18 (HPV16/18) DNA and the risk of head and neck cancers. Twelve out of 74 (16.2%) head and neck cancers contained HPV16/18 DNA, while 3 out of 70 (4.2%) non-cancer controls showed HPV16/18 positivity by polymerase chain reaction. The presence of HPV16/18 DNA was associated with an increased risk of head and neck cancer formation, showing an odds ratio of 4.32, with a 95% confidence interval of 1.26-14.78. Although its epidemiological impact might be smaller than that of other factors like cigarette smoking, the presence of HPV16/18 DNA in the aerodigestive tract is suggested to be a risk factor for human head and neck cancers.

Seroepidemiology of Human Group C Rotavirus in Japan Based on a Blocking Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay

ABSTRACT A novel blocking enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (BL-ELISA) was developed for detection of antibodies to human group C rotavirus (CHRV). The specificity of the BL-ELISA was confirmed by using animal sera hyperimmunized to group A and group C rotaviruses and paired sera from five patients with acute CHRV gastroenteritis. Furthermore, there was concordance between the BL-ELISA and a neutralization assay for CHRV in 226 (95%) of 238 samples. By using the BL-ELISA, we determined the seroprevalence of CHRV in 704 serum samples obtained from nine different age groups of inhabitants of Okayama Prefecture, Japan, in 1992, 1994, and 1996. As a result, 211 sera (30%) were found to be positive for CHRV antibodies. The seroprevalence gradually increased with age and reached 52.7% in the oldest individuals. A further analysis of the youngest age group suggested that CHRVs predominantly prevail in persons older than 3 years of age in Japan. When comparing the three sampling years, a larger percentage of antibody-positive sera was detected in 1994 than in either 1992 or 1996 in individuals between 6 and 15 years of age, reflecting the occurrence of a CHRV outbreak among children during the winter of 1992 to 1993 that was previously documented. These results indicate that CHRV infections may occur more frequently in spite of the relatively low detection rate of the virus.

Detection of Human Papillomavirus Type 6f Genome in Nasal Papillomatosis

Five cases of nasal papillomatosis were studied clinicopathologically and virologically. In a case of recurrent papillomatosis of non-inverted type located on the nasal septum, human papillomavirus (HPV) DNA was detected by dot blot hybridization with an RNA cocktail probe of mucosal HPVs. In Southern blot hybridization, the DNA hybridized with that of HPV types 6 and 11 but not with those of types 16 and 18. Its restriction endonuclease-cleavage patterns corresponded well to those of HPV type 6f. These results suggested that HPV type 6 would also be associated with nasal non-inverted papillomatosis.

Human papillomavirus in laryngeal papilloma detected by dot blot hybridization (Vira Pap) and southern blot hybridization.

We demonstrated the presence of human papillomavirus (HPV) in 3 of 4 patients with laryngeal papillomas by dot blot hybridization (Vira PapTM) and Southern blot hybridization.1. The HPV was type 6 in 2 patients and type 11 in 1 patient.2. The results of this simple detection test (Vira PapTM kit) for dot blot hybridization correlated well with that of Southern blot hybridization. Therefore, this method is useful as a screening test.3. Dot blot hybridization using serial dilutions of the homogenate of a HPV-positive papilloma revealed that 0.125mg wet weight of the papilloma sample was enough for HPV detection.