No Evidence of KSHV/HHV-8 in Mycosis Fungoides or Associated Disorders

Abstract

The recently discovered human virus known as Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) or human herpesvirus-8 (HHV-8) has been associated with body-cavity-based lymphomas in AIDS patients. It is most closely related to two other herpesviruses, the Epstein-Barr virus and herpesvirus saimiri, which are known to be associated with lymphomas in humans and nonhuman primates, respectively. To determine whether KSHV/HHV-8 is involved in the pathogenesis of mycosis fungoides (MF) and related disorders, we used a genomic PCR assay followed by confirmatory Southern blot analysis with a nested oligonucleotide probe to analyze cases for the presence of this virus. The specimens studied included fresh-frozen lesional tissues obtained from 16 patients with MF, seven with lymphomatoid papulosis, seven with primary cutaneous CD30+ large cell lymphoma of T-cell lineage, and five with Hodgkin's disease. Two T-cell tumor lines were also studied: MT4 (derived from a patient with adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma) and Jurkat (derived from a patient with T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia). All cases were uniformly negative for KSHV/HHV-8, whereas Kaposi's sarcoma-positive controls and human beta-globin DNA integrity controls were appropriately positive. These findings provide strong evidence against a role for KSHV/HHV-8 in the pathogenesis of MF or associated lymphoproliferative disorders.

Prevalence of Human Herpesvirus 8 Infection Measured by Antibodies to a Latent Nuclear Antigen in Patients With Various Dermatologic Diseases

“…4 These results were not confirmed in following studies, suggesting that HHV-8 is not directly implicated in the pathogenesis of either cutaneous T-cell or B-cell lymphoma. [9][10][11] Results of our serologic study confirm the absence of any direct or indirect role of HHV-8 in the pathogenesis of lymphoproliferative disorders of the skin.…”

“…The immunofluorescence assay was performed as previously described. 10 Briefly, BCP-1 cells were fixed in 4% paraformaldehyde, rendered permeable with detergent (0.2% Triton ϫ 100, SigmaAldrich, Dorset, England), incubated with human sera (1:100) for 30 minutes at room temperature, washed in a combined solution of phosphate-buffered saline and 3% fetal calf serum, incubated for 30 minutes with anti-human IgG-fluorescein isothiocyanate conjugate (Dako, Carpinteria, Calif), and then washed again and examined using fluorescence microscopy.…”

Epstein-Barr Virus–Negative Hodgkin's Lymphoma After Mycosis Fungoides: Molecular Evidence for Distinct Clonal Origin

“…Zucker-Franklin et al (31) reported the release of retroviral particles from cultured lymphocytes of 18 MF patients. However, to date, there is no convincing evidence for an involvement of either human T-cell Lymphotropic Virus Type-I nor human Herpesvirus 8 in the pathogenesis of MF (32,33). Patients with HL show defects in cellmediated immunity that can precede the development of the disease (34).…”

High Association of Human Herpesvirus 8 in Large-Plaque Parapsoriasis and Mycosis Fungoides

“…4 Some years ago, several studies provided strong evidence against a role for HHV-8 in the pathogenesis of mycosis fungoides (MF), the most common subtype of cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL). 5,6 In the October 2005 issue of the Archives, Trento and colleagues 7 investigated the prevalence of HHV-8 infection in an Italian population of 22 patients with lymphoproliferative diseases such as largeplaque parapsoriasis (LPP) and MF. Lesional skin samples, plasma, and peripheral blood mononuclear cells were analyzed for the presence of HHV-8.…”