Do human papillomaviruses target epidermal stem cells?

Little is known about the target cells of human papillomaviruses (HPVs). The clinical and histological analyses of very early lesions of palmoplantar warts indicate that not only the warts initially developed exclusively in the ridges of the skin, but also that the initial histological changes were restricted to the deep ridges of the epidermis, where epidermal stem cells are thought to exist in the palmoplantar skin. This suggests that HPV infection targets the stem cells. Copyright (C) 2003 S. Karger AG, Basel.