Questionable Role of Human Herpesvirus-8 in the Pathogenesis of Multiple Myeloma

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Human herpesvirus 8 (HHV-8) has been strongly implicated in the etiopathogenesis of multiple myeloma. Cytokines, especially interleukin-6, that are produced by HHV-8 infected bone marrow stromal cells may play a role in the proliferation of neoplastic plasma cells. Viral DNA sequences have been detected in the bone marrow and peripheral blood cells of myeloma patients. Yet some investigators have not found the same results. METHODS: We exmined the presence of HHV-8 DNA in the paraffin-embedded cell block specimens of bone marrow aspirations from 26 patients with multiple myeloma by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) with KS330(233) primers. Thirteen cases of bone marrow aspirations from patients with other diseases were used as a negative control. The DNA extracted from the BC-1 cell line was used as a positive control. Immunohistochemistry using commercially available HHV-8 antibody was done in the cases that were proven HHV-8 DNA-positive by PCR. RESULTS: One case (3.9%) among the 26 patients with myleoma was positive for HHV-8 DNA by PCR, but no positive cells were detected in this case by immunohistochemistry. CONCLUSIONS: We could not find a clear relation between myeloma and HHV-8 in Korean patients examined in the present study.