Benedetto E., JuanaMolgó N., MontserratGonzález B., Sergio2021-11-022021-11-022014Revista Médica de Chile, 2014, 142: 314-322http://dx.doi.org/10.4067/S0034-98872014000300005http://hdl.handle.net/11447/4988Background: Human T-lymphotropic virus-1 (HTLV-1) infection has been associated with the pathogenesis of cutaneous T cell lymphomas (CTCL). Aim:To search for HTLV-1 DNA in skin biopsies of patients with CTCL. Material and Methods: A retrospective study was conducted using 25 biopsies of patients with CTCL. DNA was extracted from lymphoid tissue by microdissection. A nested PCR was conducted to detect HTLV-1 genome using primers for the tax region. As negative controls, four cases of superficial perivascular dermatitis were chosen. As positive controls, five cases of T-cell leukemia/lymphoma (ATCL) were studied. Results: A positive reaction was found in 3 of 25 cases. These biopsies corresponded to a case of Mycosis Fungoides, a case of CD30 (-) T cell lymphoma and a case of lymphomatoid papulosis. Search was negative in the four cases of superficial perivascular dermatitis and positive in four cases of adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma (ATCL). Conclusions: HTLV-1 DNA search in tissues is a useful tool recommended to study T-cell lymphomas. HTLV-1 infection only occurs in sporadic cases but may contribute to tumor aggressiveness and prognosis.esT-lymphotropic virus 1Lymphoma T-cellCutaneousPolymerase chain reactionArticle