PCR-based Evaluation of Human Papillomavirus Genotypes in Oral Lichen Planus

The objective of the study was to use polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to examine and compare the genotype distribution of human papillomavirus (HPV) in oral lichen planus (OLP).

Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) was extracted from 20 OLP biopsy specimens. Conventional PCR assay employing consensus HPV primers was used to identify HPV DNA. Positive PCR samples were then subjected to PCR assay with HPV type-specific primers.

Out of the total 20 OLP specimens evaluated, eight samples (40%) were positive for HPV. Females had a 41.7% higher HPV-positive rate than males. The most common type in the HPV type-specific PCR assay was HPV-18 (75%), which is a high-risk type of HPV linked to malignant diseases. The erosive kind of OLP had the greatest percentage of HPV positives (50%).

The present study confirms the detection of HPV in OLP lesions, as determined by PCR-coupled HPV gene sequencing, as well as its likely mechanism of malignant transformation.