Whole genome sequence and comparative analysis of human papillomavirus type 18 isolated from a nasopharyngeal carcinoma from South Africa

Human papillomaviruses (HPVs) belong to the Papillomaviridae family and have small, double-stranded, circular DNA genomes of approximately 8 kb that contain eight or nine open reading frames (ORFs). Within the alphapapillomavirus genus, HPV18 is the second most frequently identified type in cervical carcinomas and HPV-associated head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCCs) worldwide. It has been suggested that HPV may play a role in non-Epstein-Barr virus-related nasopharyngeal carcinoma. There is limited data regarding the genomic diversity of HPV isolates from HNSCCs compared to isolates from cervical cancers. Whole-genome data is available for isolates from cervical cancers, but not from HNSCCs. Here, the whole-genome sequence of an HPV18 isolate from a nasopharyngeal carcinoma obtained using next-generation sequencing (NGS) is described.