title: Search for human herpesvirus 6 and human cytomegalovirus in bronchoalveolar lavage from patients with human immunodeficiency virus-1 and respiratory disorders.
abstract: Virus isolation and viral DNA detection by the polymerase chain reaction were used to investigate the presence of human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6) and human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) in bronchoalveolar lavage from 34 human immunodeficiency virus-1 (HIV-1)-infected patients with respiratory disorders. The aim was to assess the presence of reactivated HHV-6 in lung tissues for a subsequent evaluation of the frequency of virus involvement in respiratory clinical manifestations in the course of HIV-1 infection. Bronchoalveolar lavage samples were tested for the presence of HCMV, as a routine investigation within a protocol monitoring opportunistic infections in symptomatic HIV-1 patients. Whereas HCMV DNA was detected by the polymerase chain reaction in 12 bronchoalveolar lavage specimens, 10 of which were also positive for virus isolation, all samples were negative for HHV-6 by both virological procedures. The HHV-6 DNA finding in bronchoalveolar lavage from an HIV-1-seronegative patient with renal carcinoma, investigated accidentally together with the bronchoalveolar lavage specimens from HIV-1 seropositive patients, stressed the HHV-6 polymerase chain reaction-negative results in the bronchoalveolar lavage samples under study. It is concluded that the lung may be a target organ for HCMV infection in HIV-1-seropositive patients affected by respiratory symptoms but that this does not seem to be the case for HHV-6.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Modena, Italy.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Portolani
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Fabio
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Pecorari
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Pietrosemoli
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Meacci
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Sabbatini
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Cermelli
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: De Rienzo
mesh_terms: D001992:Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid / Q000821:virology*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003587:Cytomegalovirus / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology; D003586:Cytomegalovirus Infections / Q000150:complications / Q000276:immunology / Q000821:virology*; D004279:DNA, Viral; D006679:HIV Seropositivity / Q000150:complications* / Q000276:immunology; D015497:HIV-1 / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006566:Herpesviridae Infections / Q000150:complications / Q000276:immunology / Q000821:virology*; D015654:Herpesvirus 6, Human / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans
chemical_list: D004279:DNA, Viral