MF: Declares no potential conflict of interest. MCJM is a Wellcome Trust Senior Research Fellow, and acknowledges the Wellcome Trust for research Funding. “
“To date, more than 150 human papillomavirus (HPV) types have been completely sequenced (Fig. 1), along with over 60 animal papillomaviruses (PV) (see Papillomavirus KPT-330 purchase Episteme (PaVE); http://pave.niaid.nih.gov/#home) and [1]). The presence of PVs in mammals, as well as in various diverse hosts, including birds, turtles and snakes, suggests that they may be ubiquitously present amongst

present day amniotes (i.e., mammals, birds and reptiles) [2]. Papillomavirus types found in humans are divided into five genera based on DNA sequence analysis, with the different types having different life-cycle characteristics and disease associations [1], [3], [4] and [5] (Fig. 1). In recent years, it has become clear that many HPV types, including the majority of those contained within the Beta and Gamma genera, cause only asymptomatic infections in immunocompetent individuals and can be detected in skin swabs, and for some Gamma types, also in mucosal rinses [6], [7], [8] and [9]. selleck inhibitor Such viruses are well adapted to their host, and can in most instances complete their life-cycle and be maintained in the population without causing any apparent disease [5] and [10]. Such characteristics suggest that the PV-host

interactions are very old, and that over time, this has lead to a balance between viral replication and immune tolerance [11]. Indeed, the evolutionary origins

of PVs can be traced to the origin of the amniotes themselves (approximately 350 million years ago [12], [13] and [14]), with many evolutionary mechanisms contributing Metalloexopeptidase to their current diversity, including host/virus co-evolution, recombination, host-switching and the possible extinction of the PV lineage in some hosts [15]. In humans, the PV types that cause visible papillomas are generally of most concern for the individual, especially when they occur at oral or genital sites and are persistent. Approximately one-third of individuals who present for treatment with genital warts will still have their lesions 3 months later, with recurrence after treatment being a significant problem [16]. The low-risk Alpha types that cause these lesions (typically the Alpha 10 species [e.g., HPV6 and 11]; Fig. 1) are also implicated in the development of respiratory papillomatosis (RRP) [17]. Although rare, juvenile RRP (which affects around 4 per 100,000 children [18], [19] and [20]) is a serious condition that can only be managed by repeated surgery, and can progress to cancer in a small percentage (approximately 5%) of persistently infected individuals where the infection spreads to the lung [20] and [21]. The various types of epithelial disease that HPVs cause (i.e.