Different susceptibility of human mesothelial cells to polyomavirus infection and malignant transformation.

SV40 has been associated with mesothelioma development. The possible role of the closely related human polyomaviruses JC virus (JCV) and BK virus (BKV) in mesothelioma remained unclear. We found that JCV did not infect human mesothelial cells. BKV and SV40 infected mesothelial cells, expressed viral oncoproteins, and caused similar alterations of key cell regulatory genes. BKV replicated faster than SV40 and caused mesothelial cell lysis, not cellular transformation. SV40 did not lyse mesothelial cells and caused a high rate of transformation. These findings provide a rationale for the observation that SV40 is found in mesothelioma, rather than the ubiquitous human JCV and BKV.