To elucidate the putative role of human papillomavirus (HPV)
infection in the etiology of conjunctival
tumors, 44
formalin-fixed,
paraffin-embedded specimens of conjunctival
tumors (24 patients with
papillomas and 20 patients with dysplastic and/or malignant
tumors) were screened for
HPV infection using 4 different polymerase chain reactions (PCRs). Of the 24 samples of
papilloma, 14 (58%) displayed positive results by applying nested PCR using primer sets of HPV consensus L1 region. HPV type 6 or 11 was detected in 9 cases of
papilloma by type-specific primer sets, but none of them were positive for HPV type 16 or 18. However, by using the highly sensitive PCR technique, we failed to demonstrate the HPV
DNA of HPV types 6, 11, 16, and 18 in any of the 20
malignant epithelial tumors of conjunctiva. We conclude that HPV-6 or HPV-11 is present in a substantial percentage of conjunctival
papillomas, which is in accordance with findings of previously reported studies. In contrast, malignant conjunctival
carcinomas are not associated with
HPV infection; other pathogenic mechanisms, such as UV light, probably are more important in the cause of these malignant lesions.