10 Aug UPenn Dental Research: Antiviral and Antibacterial Chewing Gum Targets HPV and Oral Pathogens Linked to Head and Neck Cancer
MedicalResearch.com Interview with:
Henry Daniell, PhD
Vice-Chair and W.D. Miller Professor
Department of Basic & Translational Sciences
School of Dental Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia PA
Dr. Henry Daniell, Ph.D.[/caption]
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What bacteria or viruses are associated with head and neck squamous cell carcinomas?
Dr. Daniell: Human Papilloma Virus (HPV), anaerobic bacteria Porphyromonas gingivalis (Pg) and Fusobacterium nucleatum (Fn) correlate with worse survival of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). In tumorigenic cells HPV genome integrates into the host cell genome causing genome instability and genic alteration which facilitate mutation and hyperproliferation. One third of males in the globe is HPV positive and one fifth are infected with high risk HPV16 strain. Pg is invasive and replicates within tumor cells and influences oncogenic signaling of HNSCC. Fn triggers cancer progression by upregulating several oncogenes responsible for inflammation, cell proliferation, invasion, metastasis. Therefore, it is important to control HPV, Pg, and Fn in the oral cavity to reduce initiation or advancement of oral cancer.