title: Coinfection with human herpesvirus 6 variants A and B in lung tissue.
abstract: Human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6) variant B is frequently identified in peripheral blood, but identification of HHV-6 variant A is relatively rare. We devised a PCR-based method for sensitive, simultaneous detection of both HHV-6 variants. The method was applied to 34 lung tissue specimens that were previously shown to contain HHV-6 DNA. A total of 22 lung tissue samples showed coinfections with HHV-6 variants A and B, 2 had only HHV-6 variant A DNA, and 10 had only HHV-6 variant B DNA. The prevalences of coinfections in lung tissues from healthy controls (54% coinfected) and in those from bone marrow transplant patients with pneumonia (67% coinfected) were similar. These data indicate that coinfections of HHV-6 variants A and B commonly occur in lung tissues of healthy and diseased individuals.
authors.affiliation: Department of Laboratory Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, USA.
authors.forename: R W
authors.initials: RW
authors.lastname: Cone
authors.forename: M L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: R C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Hackman
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Corey
mesh_terms: D001483:Base Sequence; D016026:Bone Marrow Transplantation / Q000009:adverse effects; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D017931:DNA Primers / Q000235:genetics; D015342:DNA Probes / Q000235:genetics; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000235:genetics; D014644:Genetic Variation; D006566:Herpesviridae Infections / Q000821:virology*; D015654:Herpesvirus 6, Human / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D006801:Humans; D008168:Lung / Q000821:virology*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D011024:Pneumonia, Viral / Q000821:virology*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity
chemical_list: D017931:DNA Primers; D015342:DNA Probes; D004279:DNA, Viral