title: Sensitive detection assays for influenza RNA do not reveal viremia in US blood donors.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  There have been anecdotal reports of influenza viremia since the 1960s. We present an assessment of the prevalence of seasonal and 2009 H1N1 influenza viremia (via RNA testing) in blood donor populations using multiple sensitive detection assays.
  
  
  METHODS
  Several influenza RNA amplification assays, including transcription-mediated amplification (TMA) and 2 reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) assays, were evaluated and used to test donor samples. Retrospective samples from 478 subjects drawn at sites with high influenza activity were tested. Prospective samples were collected from 1004 blood donors who called their donation center within 3 days of donation complaining of influenza-like illness (ILI). The plasma collected on the day of donation for these subjects was tested.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of the repository samples, 2 of 478 plasma samples were initially reactive but not repeat reactive by influenza TMA. Of blood donors reporting ILI symptoms postdonation, 1 of 1004 samples was TMA initially reactive but not repeat reactive; all samples were nonreactive by RT-PCR testing.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Targeting blood donor populations most likely to have influenza infection, we failed to detect influenza RNA in 1482 donor samples, with most tested by 3 different RNA assays. Seasonal influenza does not appear to pose a significant contamination threat to the blood supply.
authors.affiliation: American Red Cross Scientific Support Office, Gaithersburg, MD, USA.
authors.forename: Susan L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Stramer
authors.forename: Cynthia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Collins
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Nugent
authors.forename: Xue
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Meghan
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fuschino
authors.forename: John W
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Heitman
authors.forename: Jacqueline
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Law
authors.forename: David E
authors.initials: DE
authors.lastname: Krysztof
authors.forename: Nancy
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Kiely
authors.forename: Deborah
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Todd
authors.forename: Nicolaas M J
authors.initials: NM
authors.lastname: Vermeulen
authors.forename: Karen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Harrington
authors.forename: Hany
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kamel
authors.forename: David J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Kelvin
authors.forename: Michael P
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Busch
authors.forename: Kirsten
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: St George
authors.forename: Indira K
authors.initials: IK
authors.lastname: Hewlett
authors.forename: Jeffrey M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Linnen
authors.forename: Philip J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Norris
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001782:Blood Donors; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005289:Ferrets; D006801:Humans; D053118:Influenza A Virus, H1N1 Subtype / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D007251:Influenza, Human / Q000097:blood*; D009976:Orthomyxoviridae Infections / Q000821:virology; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000097:blood* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D019562:Viral Load; D014766:Viremia / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000821:virology
chemical_list: D012367:RNA, Viral