Diagnostic microbiology and infectious disease
August 19, 2026 · via Europe PMC
High prevalence of HPV and high levels of oxidative stress in asymptomatic mature women in the Amazon: a pilot study.
Rotterdam GFS, Campelo SM, Laurentino RV, +8 more, Pinheiro MDCN.
AI summary — for doctors, generated from the abstract only
In a small pilot study of women in the Brazilian Amazon, nearly 30% tested positive for HPV, and older women with HPV showed signs of oxidative stress imbalance, suggesting oxidative stress biomarkers could potentially serve as a low-cost, alternative screening tool for HPV-related cervical cancer risk in resource-limited areas.
What was studied
A cross-sectional pilot study of 71 women in Belém, Pará, Brazil (2021-2022), testing endocervical samples for HPV DNA via PCR and measuring oxidative stress biomarkers (malondialdehyde/MDA and glutathione/GSH) in blood samples to assess their correlation with HPV infection status.
Key findings
- HPV prevalence was 28.2% (20 of 71 women).
- Participants aged 39-48 years showed significantly higher levels of the oxidative stress marker MDA (≥3.54 nmol/mL), with 34% exhibiting elevated levels (p=0.036).
- HPV-positive women tended to have lower levels of the antioxidant GSH (p=0.090), approaching but not reaching conventional statistical significance.
Clinical relevance
The findings suggest oxidative stress biomarkers (MDA and GSH) could potentially serve as low-cost, alternative diagnostic or risk-assessment tools for HPV-related cervical cancer screening in resource-poor areas of the Brazilian Amazon, where access to standard cervical cancer prevention measures may be limited, though this requires validation in larger studies before clinical application.
Who should care
Limitations
This is a very small pilot study (71 participants), and the key GSH-HPV association did not reach conventional statistical significance (p=0.090); findings are hypothesis-generating and require validation in larger, adequately powered studies.
Nearly 30% of women tested in this Amazon pilot study were HPV-positive, and evidence of oxidative stress imbalance in affected women suggests inexpensive oxidative stress biomarkers might eventually support HPV-related cancer risk screening in resource-limited settings, pending further validation.
This is an AI-generated summary of the published abstract, not a clinical recommendation. It may not reflect the full text or subsequent updates — verify against the original source before acting on it.
Abstract
Introduction
Cervical cancer is a health issue in the Amazon region. Human papillomavirus (HPV) is the primary cause of cervical cancer. Oxidative stress has been shown to play a role in the HPV-associated carcinogenesis process.
Objectives
To evaluate the prevalence of HPV infection and its correlation with oxidative stress biomarkers in women from Belém, Pará.
Methods
This was a cross-sectional pilot study involving 71 women conducted between March 2021 and March 2022. Endocervical samples were analyzed for HPV DNA using PCR, and the oxidative stress biomarkers malondialdehyde (MDA) and glutathione (GSH) were measured in blood samples. Statistical analyses were performed using SPSS software, version 21.0.
Results
The prevalence of HPV was 28.2% (20/71). Participants aged 39 to 48 years showed significantly higher levels of MDA (≥3.54 nmol/mL), with 34% exhibiting elevated levels (p-value = 0.036). HPV-positive women tended to have lower levels of GSH (p-value = 0.090).
Discussion
There is likely an imbalance between oxidative damage and antioxidant defense mechanisms in HPV pathogenesis; furthermore, low levels of the antioxidant GSH indicate that the studied population may be exposed to the harmful effects of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Oxidative stress may play a role in HPV persistence and cervical carcinogenesis.
Conclusion
The high prevalence of sexually transmitted HPV infection and the presence of oxidative stress among women in the Brazilian Amazon may indicate a limited impact of cervical cancer prevention measures. Oxidative stress biomarkers (MDA and GSH) could potentially serve as low-cost diagnostic options, offering an alternative for resource-poor areas in the Brazilian Amazon.
DOI
10.1016/j.diagmicrobio.2026.117620
PMID
42660062
Research metadata (titles, abstracts, authors, publication dates) is sourced from Europe PMC, which aggregates content from PubMed/MEDLINE, PubMed Central, and other providers under the U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM/NCBI). NLM does not claim copyright on abstracts; the original journal publishers or authors may hold rights to the full articles. AI-generated summaries are derived only from the abstract, never the full text, and are always labeled as AI-generated.
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