Abstract

Background: High-risk Human Papillomaviruses (HR-HPVs) are the etiological agents of cervical cancer and its preneoplastic lesions. HPV16 and 18 are the most frequent HR-HPV genotypes detected in cervical cancer. HR-HPV genome integration into the host cell is an important event in the carcinogenic process. However, it remains uncertain which stage of cervical carcinogenesis HPV16 and 18 inte- gration occurs in the Chilean population. Aim: The goal of this study was to evaluate HPV16 and HPV18 integration in preneoplastic lesions of the cervix. Methods: DNA was extracted from 108 cervical scrape samples with preneoplastic lesions. HPV was genotyped using PCR and non-radioactive hybridization. The integration status of HPV16 and HPV18 was determined by evaluating the E2 gene presence through PCR. Results: HPV16 and HPV18 tested positive in 36.1% and 12.0% of samples, respectively. HPV16 was found integrated in 23.1% of HPV 16 cases, while HPV 18 in 100% of samples positive for this viral genotype. Conclusions: HR-HPV integration is an early event in cervical carcinogenesis, occurring in nearly half of preneo- plastic lesions and being more frequent in HPV18 than in HPV16. The evaluation of HR-HPV integration can be utilized as a complementary tool for detecting HPV in the Chilean population.