Abstract
Background:Simian virus-40 (SV40) is a DNA tumour virus that was introduced into the human population with contaminated poliovirus vaccine, and its role in mesothelioma is widely debated. PCR based testing has been called into question, as false positives can be because of cross-reactivity with related viruses, or to laboratory contamination. The Institute of Medicine has recommended the development of more sensitive and specific tests to resolve this controversy.Methods:We have characterized highly sensitive RT-PCR based assays that are specific for SV40-encoded microRNAs (miRNAs), as an alternative to current testing methods.Results:Using this sensitive and specific detection method, we were unable to identify SV40 miRNA expression in human malignant pleural mesothelioma (MM) samples.Conclusion:Our work indicates that SV40 miRNAs are not likely to contribute to mesothelioma tumourogenesis, but highlights the value of this approach when compared with the relatively unspecific current testing methods.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 885-888 |
Number of pages | 4 |
Journal | British Journal of Cancer |
Volume | 103 |
Issue number | 6 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Sep 7 2010 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:We thank C Chen and L Wong of Applied Biosystems for custom miRNA assay design and synthesis. SV40 (wild type strain 777) was obtained from W Atwood. We also thank Dr John Godleski for advice and input on this work. This work was supported by NIH Grants: 2 T32 ES 007272-16 and R01 CA126939. Some qPCR experiments were carried out in the Core Facility of the Center for Genomics and Proteomics, supported by the Center for Cancer Signaling Networks COBRE 5P20RR015578-09.
Keywords
- SV40
- mesothelioma
- microRNA