DETECTION OF GENITAL PAPILLOMAVIRUS TYPES BY POLYMERASE CHAIN-REACTION USING COMMON PRIMERS

We describe the detection of eight genital human papillomavirus (HPV) types, including HPV16 and HPV18, by PCR amplification of a 323 base-pair region of the genome within the L1 open reading frame (ORF). The primer sequences are: TGYAAATATCCWGATTWTWT and GTATCWACMACAGTAACAAA. The method will detect purified HPV16 DNA down to a concentration of as little as a single molecule in 100-mu-1. The method is also applicable to purified DNA and crude lysates from tumour biopsies. Typing of the PCR product can be achieved with specific oligonucleotide probes.