Diagnostiki Athinon no longer performs molecular testing for SV40 Polyomavirus.
Molecular testing for SV40 Polyomavirus is used to diagnose and manage patients with SV40 infections.
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Polyomaviruses are DNA viruses (double-stranded DNA, ~ 5,000 base pairs, circular genome). They are small (40-50 nm in diameter), have an icosahedron structure, and are not surrounded by a lipoprotein envelope. They are potentially oncogenic (i.e., tumor-causing) and often persist, causing latent infections in the host without causing apparent disease. However, they can cause tumors in various species or patients with ineffective immune systems. The name Polyoma refers to the ability of viruses to create multiple (-oma) tumors.
The most important Polyomaviruses, in terms of pathogenicity to humans, are:
- JC virus that can infect the respiratory system, kidneys, and brain (can sometimes cause fatal progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy)
- BK virus causes a mild respiratory infection and can affect the kidneys of immunosuppressed transplant patients. Both viruses are widespread: about 80% of the US adult population has antibodies against JC and BK.
- SV40 virus is not generally considered pathogenic to humans but has been found in various tumors.
Simian Virus 40 (SV40) is a member of the family Polyomaviridae and infects several species of monkeys, but the infection is mainly asymptomatic. It was discovered in the early 1960s as a transfection into Rhesus monkey kidney cell cultures used to produce polio vaccines. The virus is envelope-free and contains a circular, double-stranded DNA molecule of approximately 5 kb (thousands of bases). The genome is protected within a twenty-sided protein structure consisting of 3 structural proteins: VP1, VP2, and VP3. The viral genome contains one primary control region (NCCR) and another transcriptional control region. It also includes a region encoding the T protein that promotes viral DNA replication in host cells and their packaging in viral capsids.
Several studies have shown that SV40 can cause tumors in hamsters. Concerns have been raised about polio vaccine infections made before 1963 in that they could have adverse effects on human health. SV40 is generally not considered to be pathogenic to humans. Still, it has been found in various types of tumors, including brain, bone, mesotheliomas, and non-Hodgkin lymphomas, suggesting that it may induce various transformations and oncogenes under certain conditions.
