Characterization of a new human papillomavirus (HPV 41) from disseminated warts and detection of its DNA in some skin carcinomas.

A new human papillomavirus type (HPV 41), distantly related to known HPV prototypes, was isolated from a patient with disseminated facial, peri-anal and foot warts (epidermodysplasia verruciformis was not diagnosed). The viral DNA was molecularly cloned in 2 BamH1 restriction fragments with sizes of 6.5 kb and 0.98 kb, respectively. The classification of this cloned DNA as a new type is based on the degree of cross-hybridization with 40 HPV types under conditions of varying stringency. A total of 106 benign and malignant skin lesions, as well as 71 malignant tumours of different origins, were screened for the presence of HPV-related sequences. In 2 out of 10 squamous-cell carcinomas and in 1 of 3 arsenic keratoses HPV 41 DNA sequences could be detected.