The papillomavirus E5 genes play an important role in the induction of proliferation of infected cells, and these HPV genomic regions are affected by the events leading to integration of genital HPVs. Two HPV18 E5-related, transcribed mouse sequences, HC1 and Q300, have recently been described. We searched for human equivalents to these sequences, and isolated a clone with a 9.6 kb insert (633b) from a laryngeal carcinoma DNA library, that strongly cross-hybridised with both the HPV18 E5 and HC1 sequences. Restriction and Southern blot analysis showed that 633b is a single copy sequence without rearrangements and viral sequences. The E5-related region is transcribed, producing a 1.9 kb RNA band detected in the poly(A)+ RNA from different cell lines tested. Sequence alignments showed a close similarity to the HC1 and HPV18 E5 sequences, as well as to Q300 and different viral and human growth factors, allowing to fit a putative phylogenetic tree. The corresponding human gene was named PE5L. It was mapped to the short arm of chromosome 7, at 7p13-14 as determined by in situ hybridisation. A genomic region with similarities to HPV E5 sequences may constitute an HPV-DNA integration target, which is often located near chromosomal breakpoints, oncogenes, etc. We conclude that PE5L belongs to an E5-like family of cellular sequences, and that it may constitute a target for HPV recombination.