Attempts to detect virus-specific DNA in human tumors. II. Nucleic acid hybridizations with complementary RNA of human herpes group viruses.

DNA derived from various human malignant and non-malignant tissues was hybridized with radioactive complementary R N A (cR N A ) synthetized in vitro with the aid of Ecoli-RNA-polymerase by using DNA of human herpes group viruses as templates. Epstein-Barr virus (EB V ) -specific c R NA annealed significantly with DNA from nasopharyngeal carcinoma biopsies as well as with DNA preparations from leukocytes, bone marrow, lymph node and spleen of some patients with infectious mononucleosis. No significant hybridization was observed with either herpes simplex type 2 or type I cRNA and DNA from ten cervical carcinoma biopsies. cRNA of human cytomegalovirus and varicellazoster virus did not hybridize with DNA from Kaposi’s sarcoma or DNA from heavily infiltrated spleens of patients with Hodgkin’s disease. These data do not exclude a role of these herpes viruses in the etiology of cervical carcinoma, Kaposi’s sarcoma and Hodgkin’s disease. They show, however, that such a relationship (if it exists) must differ quantitatively to a considerable extent from the one observed with EBV in EBV-associated tumors.