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. 2023 Oct;111(4):971-981.
doi: 10.1007/s10266-023-00807-y. Epub 2023 Mar 25.

Detection of Merkel cell polyomavirus in multiple primary oral squamous cell carcinomas

Naoya Kitamura  1 , Yumiko Hashida  2 , Tomonori Higuchi  2 , Seiji Ohno  3 , Shinya Sento  3 , Eri Sasabe  3 , Ichiro Murakami  4 , Tetsuya Yamamoto  3 , Masanori Daibata  2
Affiliations

Detection of Merkel cell polyomavirus in multiple primary oral squamous cell carcinomas

Naoya Kitamura et al. Odontology. 2023 Oct.

Abstract

Oral microbiome studies have mainly focussed on bacteria, with the relationship between viruses and oral cancers remaining poorly understood. Oral cancers can develop even in the absence of any history of daily smoking or drinking. Oral cancer patients frequently have multiple primary cancers in the oral cavity and other organs, such as the upper gastrointestinal tract. Merkel cell polyomavirus (MCPyV) is a novel oncovirus identified from a subtype of skin cancer in 2008. In this study, we investigated the potential involvement of MCPyV in the pathogenesis of oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). Participants comprised 115 Japanese patients with OSCC (single primary: 109 tumours in 109 patients; multiple primaries: 16 tumours in 6 patients) treated in our department between 2014 and 2017. DNA was extracted from formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded specimens of primary lesions. MCPyV DNA copy counts were analysed by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. Twenty-four of the 115 patients (20.9%) were positive for MCPyV DNA. No association was found between presence or absence of MCPyV DNA and clinical characteristics other than number of primary lesions. The MCPyV DNA-positive rate was significantly higher for multiple primary OSCCs (62.5%, 10/16 tumours) than for single primary OSCCs (16.5%, 18/109 tumours; P < 0.001). Furthermore, MCPyV DNA load was significantly higher for patients with multiple primaries (P < 0.05). MCPyV was observed more frequently and DNA load was significantly higher with multiple primary OSCCs than with single primary OSCC. MCPyV may play some role as an oncovirus for multiple primary OSCCs.

Keywords: Japanese; Merkel cell polyomavirus; Multiple primary oral cancers; Oral microbiome; Oral squamous cell carcinoma.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Distribution of MCPyV DNA load in patients with single vs. multiple OSCCs. Box plots showing comparisons between MCPyV DNA load in single and multiple OSCCs. In MCPyV DNA-positive single-OSCCs (18 tumours), median DNA load is 0.011 copies/cell (range 0.001–0.318 copies/cell; interquartile range 0.003–0.037 copies/cell). In MCPyV DNA-positive multiple-OSCCs (10 tumours), median DNA load is 0.23 copies/cell (range 0.007–1.842 copies/cell; interquartile range 0.023–0.67 copies/cell). MCPyV DNA loads are significantly higher in patients with multiple OSCCs than in patients with single OSCC (P = 0.011, Mann–Whitney U test)
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Kaplan–Meier curves for overall survival (OS) and disease-specific survival (DSS) by oral MCPyV DNA status. No significant difference in OS or DSS is apparent between oral MCPyV-positive and -negative patients
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Kaplan–Meier curves for overall survival (OS) and disease-specific survival (DSS) for patients with single and multiple primary OSCCs. No significant difference in OS or DSS is seen between patients with single and multiple primary OSCCs
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