Hypothetical Genes Are Frequent Targets of HPV DNA Integration in Cervical Carcinomas

Objective: Integration of HPV DNA into the host genome is a frequent event in cervical carcinogenesis. Viral integration sites seem to be randomly distributed among all chromosomes with a clear preference for genomic fragile sites. To date about 200 HPV DNA integration sites have been mapped. However, this number is still too small to fully comprehend the different mechanisms by which HPV DNA integration contributes to carcinogenesis. Methods: 55 cervical carcinoma samples of FIGO stage IA to IIIB positive for either HPV16 (n=34) or HPV18 (n=21) were analysed. Viral-cellular fusion transcripts were detected usin…