Abstract
Objectives:
Vestibular schwannoma (VS) is a benign tumor thatarises from the Schwann cells of the vestibular nerve. Human herpes virus (HHV) 1 and 2 have been found within the parenchyma of virtually all the organs of the body and the dorsal root ganglia of the spinal cord in humans. HHV has been shown to replicate within Schwann cells, and infection by HHV has been shown to mimic VS on magnetic resonance imaging. Others hypothesized that the likely cause of VS is HHV infection and that prior exposure to HHV-3 is a potential risk factor in VS development. Our objective wasto assess for the presence of HHV viral DNA using immunohistochemical techniques in surgically excised vestibular schwannoma samples.
Methods:
Tissue microarrays (TMAs) representing sporadic and NF2-associated vestibular schwannomas from 121 patients, as well as both positive and negative controls, were studied. TMA sections were immunostained-using antibodies directed against HHV-1, HHV-2, HHV-3, HHV-5, and HHV-8.
Results:
There was no immunohistochemically detectable HHV (HHV-1, HHV-2, HHV-3, HHV-5, HHV-8) in any of the 121 cases of sporadic or NF2 cases analyzed.
Conclusions:
These data offer no support for an association between HHV and the development of sporadic or NF2 associated VS in humans.
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