VACCINE

Developments In Biology, Basel • March 2006
Polio vaccines, SV40 and human tumours,
an update on false positive and false negative results
Author information
Elmishad AG1, Bocchetta M, Pass HI, Carbone M.
Loyola University Medical Center
Cardinal Bernardin Cancer Center
Department of Pathology, Maywood, IL 60153, USA
Abstract
Simian virus 40 (SV40) has been detected in different human tumours in numerous laboratories.
The detection of SV40 in human tumours has been linked to the administration
of SV40-contaminated polio vaccines from 1954 until 1963. Many of these reports
linked SV40 to human mesothelioma. Some studies have failed to detect SV40 in human
tumours and this has caused a controversy. Here we review the current literature. Moreover,
we present evidence showing how differences in the sensitivities of methodologies
can lead to a very different interpretation of the same study. The same 20 mesothelioma
specimens all tested negative, 2/20 tested positive or 7/20 tested positive for SV40 Tag
by simply changing the detection method on the same immuno-precipitation/western
blot membranes. These results provide a simple explanation for some of the apparent
discordant results reported in the literature.
“we present evidence showing how
differences in the sensitivities of methodologies
can lead to a very different interpretation
of the same study.”
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16566440