Abstract: Objective To study the distribution of K15 alleles of human herpesvirus 8 (HHV-8) in Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) in Xinjiang,and to investigate the relationship between clinical profiles of KS and alleles of HHV-8 K15.Methods HHV-8 DNA was extracted with phenol-chloroform-isoamyl alcohol from 27 formalin-fixed,paraffin-embedded tissue specimens of KS.The HHV-8 K15 gene was amplified by nestedPCR,and sequenced for the identification of K15 allele.Results HHV-8 DNA could be detected in 22 (81.48%) out of 27 KS patients in Xinjiang.HHV-8 DNA was detected in all 4 patients with AIDS-related KS.Twenty viral strains were identified as P type,including all 4 from the AIDS-related KS patients;two strains were identified as M type,which were all from the classical KS patients.Conclusions In KS,most of HHV-8 K15 alleles are P type,and some are M type.The 4 patients with AIDS-related KS all carried P type of K15 allele.

Key words: Sarcoma,Kaposi, Herpesvirus 8,human, Gene,K15, Alleles