User login
Photo courtesy of UAB Hospital
Scientists say they have discovered a new virus that can be transmitted through the blood supply.
It is currently unclear whether the virus is harmful or not, but researchers found that it shares genetic features with hepatitis C virus (HCV) and human
pegivirus (HPgV), which was formerly known as hepatitis G virus.
The new virus, which the researchers have named human hepegivirus-1 (HHpgV-1), is described in the journal mBio.
“HHpgV-1 is unique because it shares genetic similarity with both highly pathogenic HCV and the apparently non-pathogenic HPgV,” said study author Amit Kapoor, PhD, of Columbia University in New York, New York. “People need to be aware of this new infection in humans.”
To identify HHpgV-1, Dr Kapoor and his colleagues performed high-throughput sequencing on blood samples from 46 individuals in the Transfusion-Transmitted Viruses Study. The samples were collected between July 1974 and June 1980.
The researchers analyzed samples both pre- and post-transfusion and, along with a variety of known viruses, they identified HHpgV-1 in 2 individuals.
The virus was only present in post-transfusion samples, and additional tests showed that both patients were able to clear HHpgV-1.
Genetic analysis revealed that the virus was related to HCV and HPgV. Genomic testing of 70 additional individuals in the Transfusion-Transmitted Viruses Study did not detect further cases of HHpgV-1.
The researchers also performed high-throughput sequencing on samples from 106 individuals in the Multicenter Hemophilia Cohort Study who received plasma-derived clotting factor concentrates.
The team identified HHpgV-1 in 2 individuals, one of whom had persistent long-term infection (5.4 years).
“We just don’t know how many viruses are transmitted through the blood supply,” Dr Kapoor said. “There are so many viruses out there, and they need to be characterized in order to ensure that transfusions are safe.”
He said the next steps are to determine the prevalence of HHpgV-1 and whether it causes disease. If it causes disease, screening the blood supply for the virus will be appropriate.
“Ultimately, once we know more about this, we will look for the presence of this virus in people with certain diseases,” Dr Kapoor said.
“The unusually high infection prevalence of HCV, HBV, and HIV in hemophilia patients and other transfusion recipients could have been prevented by earlier identification of these viruses and development of accurate diagnostic assays.” 
Photo courtesy of UAB Hospital
Scientists say they have discovered a new virus that can be transmitted through the blood supply.
It is currently unclear whether the virus is harmful or not, but researchers found that it shares genetic features with hepatitis C virus (HCV) and human
pegivirus (HPgV), which was formerly known as hepatitis G virus.
The new virus, which the researchers have named human hepegivirus-1 (HHpgV-1), is described in the journal mBio.
“HHpgV-1 is unique because it shares genetic similarity with both highly pathogenic HCV and the apparently non-pathogenic HPgV,” said study author Amit Kapoor, PhD, of Columbia University in New York, New York. “People need to be aware of this new infection in humans.”
To identify HHpgV-1, Dr Kapoor and his colleagues performed high-throughput sequencing on blood samples from 46 individuals in the Transfusion-Transmitted Viruses Study. The samples were collected between July 1974 and June 1980.
The researchers analyzed samples both pre- and post-transfusion and, along with a variety of known viruses, they identified HHpgV-1 in 2 individuals.
The virus was only present in post-transfusion samples, and additional tests showed that both patients were able to clear HHpgV-1.
Genetic analysis revealed that the virus was related to HCV and HPgV. Genomic testing of 70 additional individuals in the Transfusion-Transmitted Viruses Study did not detect further cases of HHpgV-1.
The researchers also performed high-throughput sequencing on samples from 106 individuals in the Multicenter Hemophilia Cohort Study who received plasma-derived clotting factor concentrates.
The team identified HHpgV-1 in 2 individuals, one of whom had persistent long-term infection (5.4 years).
“We just don’t know how many viruses are transmitted through the blood supply,” Dr Kapoor said. “There are so many viruses out there, and they need to be characterized in order to ensure that transfusions are safe.”
He said the next steps are to determine the prevalence of HHpgV-1 and whether it causes disease. If it causes disease, screening the blood supply for the virus will be appropriate.
“Ultimately, once we know more about this, we will look for the presence of this virus in people with certain diseases,” Dr Kapoor said.
“The unusually high infection prevalence of HCV, HBV, and HIV in hemophilia patients and other transfusion recipients could have been prevented by earlier identification of these viruses and development of accurate diagnostic assays.”
Photo courtesy of UAB Hospital
Scientists say they have discovered a new virus that can be transmitted through the blood supply.
It is currently unclear whether the virus is harmful or not, but researchers found that it shares genetic features with hepatitis C virus (HCV) and human
pegivirus (HPgV), which was formerly known as hepatitis G virus.
The new virus, which the researchers have named human hepegivirus-1 (HHpgV-1), is described in the journal mBio.
“HHpgV-1 is unique because it shares genetic similarity with both highly pathogenic HCV and the apparently non-pathogenic HPgV,” said study author Amit Kapoor, PhD, of Columbia University in New York, New York. “People need to be aware of this new infection in humans.”
To identify HHpgV-1, Dr Kapoor and his colleagues performed high-throughput sequencing on blood samples from 46 individuals in the Transfusion-Transmitted Viruses Study. The samples were collected between July 1974 and June 1980.
The researchers analyzed samples both pre- and post-transfusion and, along with a variety of known viruses, they identified HHpgV-1 in 2 individuals.
The virus was only present in post-transfusion samples, and additional tests showed that both patients were able to clear HHpgV-1.
Genetic analysis revealed that the virus was related to HCV and HPgV. Genomic testing of 70 additional individuals in the Transfusion-Transmitted Viruses Study did not detect further cases of HHpgV-1.
The researchers also performed high-throughput sequencing on samples from 106 individuals in the Multicenter Hemophilia Cohort Study who received plasma-derived clotting factor concentrates.
The team identified HHpgV-1 in 2 individuals, one of whom had persistent long-term infection (5.4 years).
“We just don’t know how many viruses are transmitted through the blood supply,” Dr Kapoor said. “There are so many viruses out there, and they need to be characterized in order to ensure that transfusions are safe.”
He said the next steps are to determine the prevalence of HHpgV-1 and whether it causes disease. If it causes disease, screening the blood supply for the virus will be appropriate.
“Ultimately, once we know more about this, we will look for the presence of this virus in people with certain diseases,” Dr Kapoor said.
“The unusually high infection prevalence of HCV, HBV, and HIV in hemophilia patients and other transfusion recipients could have been prevented by earlier identification of these viruses and development of accurate diagnostic assays.”