Background/Objective: Pituitary neuroendocrine tumors (PITNETs) often show a tendency towards invasive behavior, i.e., an invasion towards the cavernous sinuses or destruction of the sella turcica. In the present study, we analyzed whether a transcriptionally active HPV infection affects the invasiveness of pituitary tumors. Methods: Sixty patients with different phenotypes of PITNETs who underwent neurosurgery were studied. The obtained postoperative material was analyzed histopathologically. For each patient, formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded blocks were cut into ultra-thin slices and two to three of them were designated for DNA extraction, while one was used for histological slides. Based on the isolated DNA, the presence of DNA from individual HPV types was determined by the real-time detection polymerase chain reaction using the REALQUALITY RQ-Multi HPV Detection reagent kit (AB ANALITICA, Italy). P16 protein expression was assessed by immunohistochemical staining on the histological slides. A transcriptionally active infection with individual HPV types was distinguished when HPV DNA and P16 protein overexpression were detected simultaneously for a given tumor. Results: In the group of the 60 analyzed PITNETs, a transcriptionally active high-risk HPV infection was detected in a subset of 11 tumors (18.3%). This infection was associated with a significantly lower probability of tumor invasiveness, measured on both the Knosp (OR = 0.11, 95% CI: 0.02–0.58) and Hardy scales (OR = 0.12 95% CI: 0.024–0.56). Conclusions: Further studies are needed to confirm the prevalence of transcriptionally active HPV infections in pituitary adenomas and the role of these infections in the invasiveness of pituitary tumors.
背景/目的：垂体神经内分泌肿瘤常表现出侵袭性行为倾向，例如向海绵窦侵袭或破坏蝶鞍结构。本研究旨在分析转录活跃的人乳头瘤病毒感染是否影响垂体肿瘤的侵袭性。方法：对60例接受神经外科手术的不同类型垂体神经内分泌肿瘤患者进行研究。术后获取的组织标本进行组织病理学分析。每位患者的福尔马林固定石蜡包埋组织块被制成超薄切片，其中2-3片用于DNA提取，1片用于制作组织学切片。基于提取的DNA，采用REALQUALITY RQ-Multi HPV检测试剂盒通过实时荧光定量聚合酶链反应检测特定HPV亚型的DNA存在。通过组织切片的免疫组化染色评估P16蛋白表达。当在特定肿瘤中同时检测到HPV DNA和P16蛋白过表达时，则判定存在该HPV亚型的转录活跃感染。结果：在60例分析的垂体神经内分泌肿瘤中，11例（18.3%）检测到转录活跃的高危型HPV感染。该感染与显著降低的肿瘤侵袭概率相关，这一关联在Knosp分级（OR=0.11，95%CI：0.02-0.58）和Hardy分级（OR=0.12，95%CI：0.024-0.56）评估中均得到证实。结论：需要进一步研究以确认转录活跃的HPV感染在垂体腺瘤中的普遍性及其在垂体肿瘤侵袭性中的作用。
肿瘤(癌症)患者之家