Shisa Homolog 8 (SHISA8)

Small 233-bp or 330-bp DNA fragments of the ORF26 gene of human Kaposi’s sarcoma herpesvirus (KSHV) have been used extensively to identify KSHV by PCR in clinical samples; to associate KSHV with novel diseases; and to correlate KSHV strain differences with pathogenicity.

The most common DNA sequence used for detection of Kaposi’s sarcoma herpes virus (KSHV) in clinical samples by PCR is the small ORF26 locus described in 1994 by Chang et al. ORF26 PCR gives positive results with most samples that come from the acknowledged KSHV-associated disease conditions, including all forms of Kaposi’s sarcoma (KS) plus a subset of cases of both Primary Effusion Lymphoma (PEL) and Multicentric Castleman’s Disease (MCD) .