Prevalence of antibodies to herpes simplex virus 2 among homosexual men either positive or negative for human immunodeficiency viruses in Slovakia.
We determined the prevalence of antibodies to herpes simplex virus 2 (HSV-2, HSV-2 antibodies) in sera of homosexual men either positive for human immunodeficiency virus 1 (HIV-1, HIV+, a group of 27 sera) or negative for HIV-1 and HIV-2 (HIV-, a group of 52 sera) in Slovakia. Antibodies to HSV-2 glycoprotein G-2 (gG-2, gG-2 antibodies) were determined by a double-antibody sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (DAS-ELISA) and immunoblot analysis. We found that 40% of HIV+ and 23% of HIV- homosexual men were positive for the gG-2 antibodies, what is 3.6 and 2.1 times higher incidence, respectively, than that in the control heterosexual population (Bystrická et al., Acta Virol. 42, 319-324, 1998). Identification of individuals infected with genital herpes among HIV+ and HIV- homosexual men should be succeeded by antiviral therapy in order to prevent transmission of HSV-2 and HIV as well in this community.
Bystrická
M
M
Institute of Virology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dúbravská cesta 9, 842 45 Bratislava, Slovak Republic. virubyst@nic.savba.sk
Gasparovicová
L
L
Staneková
D
D
Mokrás
M
M
Soláriková
L
L
Russ
G
G
D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000097:blood*; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology*; D018023:HIV Seronegativity; D006679:HIV Seropositivity / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology*; D015497:HIV-1; D015498:HIV-2; D006558:Herpes Genitalis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D018258:Herpesvirus 2, Human / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D015151:Immunoblotting; D008297:Male; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies; D018154:Slovakia / Q000453:epidemiology
D000914:Antibodies, Viral