Human herpesvirus 6: a survey of presence and variant distribution in normal peripheral lymphocytes and lymphoproliferative disorders.
The presence and distribution of human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6) variants was investigated by polymerase chain reaction in samples from healthy donors and biopsies from non-Hodgkin's lymphomas and Hodgkin's disease. HHV-6 DNA was present in peripheral blood lymphocytes of 17% of healthy donors, variant B three times more frequently than A. HHV-6 was not present in 35 non-Hodgkin's lymphomas of B cell origin and was in only 1 of 10 non-Hodgkin's lymphomas in AIDS patients. HHV-6 DNA was present in 29% of Hodgkin's disease samples; variant B was more frequent than A. Epstein-Barr virus DNA was detected in 38% of Hodgkin's disease biopsies and did not correlate with HHV-6. Thus, the two HHV-6 variants are differently distributed in the healthy population, and the virus probably has no direct role in the development of B cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. The detection of HHV-6 DNA in about one-third of Hodgkin's disease biopsies suggests that HHV-6 might be associated with a subset of this disorder.
Institute of Microbiology, University of Ferrara, Italy.
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D
Di Luca
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Dolcetti
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Mirandola
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De Re
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Secchiero
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A
Carbone
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Boiocchi
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Cassai
D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D014644:Genetic Variation; D015654:Herpesvirus 6, Human / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D006689:Hodgkin Disease / Q000382:microbiology*; D006801:Humans; D008214:Lymphocytes / Q000382:microbiology*; D008228:Lymphoma, Non-Hodgkin / Q000382:microbiology*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity
D004279:DNA, Viral