Human herpesvirus-8 in northwestern China: epidemiology and characterization among blood donors.
BACKGROUND
Human herpes virus 8 (HHV-8) is the etiologic agent associated with development of classical, AIDS-related, iatrogenic, and endemic Kaposi's sarcoma (KS). Several studies provide strong evidence that HHV-8 can be transmitted by blood transfusion. We evaluated the seroprevalence and potential risk factors of HHV-8 infection in blood donors in one region. We surveyed HHV-8 infection among 4461 blood donors in Xinjiang, China, a unique endemic area for HHV-8 and KS.


RESULTS
The HHV-8 seroprevalence was higher in local minority groups which comprise most KS cases in China, than in Han people. HHV-8 prevalence was 18.6% in the Han ethnic group, 25.9% in Uygur subjects, 29.2% in Kazak subjects, 36.8% in Mongolian subjects, and 21.9% in other ethnic groups. In several subgroups, the time of donation of whole blood seemed to be a risk factor. In HHV-8-seropositive subjects, a larger fraction of local minorities (23.9%) had high HHV-8 titers than that of Han subjects (9.2%). HHV-8 infection was associated with ethnicity and residence.


CONCLUSIONS
HHV-8 seroprevalence was significantly high among blood donors in Xinjiang, where the prevalence of KS correlates with HHV-8 prevalence and titers in Uygur and Kazak ethnic groups. Blood exposure represented by the frequency of blood donation indicated a possible blood-borne transmission route of HHV-8 in Xinjiang. Detecting anti-HHV-8 antibodies before donation in this region is therefore important.
First Teaching Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University, Urumqi, Xinjiang, PR China. wangxing7610@yahoo.com.cn
Xing
X
Wang
Bin
B
He
Zhaoxia
Z
Zhang
Tao
T
Liu
Hui
H
Wang
Xu
X
Li
Qiong
Q
Zhang
Ke
K
Lan
Xiaomei
X
Lu
Hao
H
Wen
D000328:Adult; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000097:blood*; D001782:Blood Donors; D017848:Blood-Borne Pathogens / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006566:Herpesviridae Infections / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000635:transmission / Q000821:virology*; D019288:Herpesvirus 8, Human / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies; D055815:Young Adult
D000914:Antibodies, Viral