Search for cellular partners of human papillomavirus type 16 E2 protein.

Human papillomaviruses (HPVs) are small, double-stranded DNA viruses that infect cutaneous and mucosal epithelia. Type 16 (HPV16) displays tropism to genital epithelia, giving rise to genital warts and cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN), which is a precursor lesion to invasive carcinoma of the cervix. The great majority of human cervical cancers contain integrated HPV DNA where the E2 gene is usually disrupted, suggesting that the loss of the E2 protein is an important step in HPV-induced carcinogenesis. The HPV16 E2 protein is a regulatory protein that seems to be essential for creating favourable conditions for establishment of infection and proper completion of the viral life cycle. Recently, diverse activities of the E2 proteins have been described, but the molecular basis of these processes has not beenfully elucidated. Using a yeast two-hybrid system, we have identified epithelial cellular proteins that bind to the E2 protein of HPV16.