Parvovirus 4 in French in-patients: a study of haemodialysis and lung transplant cohorts

International audienceThe epidemiology and the clinical implication of human parvovirus 4 (PARV4) in human populations is still under evaluation. The distribution of PARV4 DNA was determined in cohorts of French haemodialysis and lung transplant patients. Plasma samples (n=289) were tested for PARV4 by real-time PCR assay (ORF2), and amplification products selected at random were sequenced. Analysis of available serological and biological markers was also undertaken. Fifty-seven samples out of 185 (30.8%) were positive for PARV4 DNA in the cohort of haemodialysis patients. A higher prevalence of the virus was identified in individuals with markers of HBV infection. PARV4 was also identified in 14 out of 104 samples (13.5%) from lung transplant recipients, with no clear-cut association with available clinical markers. Point mutations located on the zone of real-time detection were identified for some amplification products. This study describes the detection of PARV4 in the blood of haemodialysis and lung transplanted patients with significant difference in prevalence in these two cohorts. Further studies will be needed in order to understand better both the potential implication in host health and the natural history of this virus

Distribution of Parvovirus 4 and KI/WU polyomaviruses in HIV-positive blood donations, France.

International audienc

Molecular epidemiology of KI and WU polyomaviruses in healthy blood donors, south-eastern France.

International audienceThe epidemiology of human polyomaviruses KI (KIPyV) and WU (WUPyV) in healthy populations is described poorly in the literature. The frequency of KIPyV and WUPyV viraemia was evaluated in a cohort of blood donors from south-eastern France. Plasma samples (n = 640) were investigated for the presence of KIPyV/WUPyV DNA using a conserved real-time PCR detection system (VP2 gene). Three plasma samples (3/640; ∼0.5%) exhibited a positive fluorescence signal, with a low viral load (<500 copies/ml plasma); no additional amplicons were identifiable by agarose gel analysis. Sequencing highlighted the KIPyV origin of the three amplified sequences and the occurrence of point mutations. The sustained detection of KIPyV DNA in two serial samples (9 months) was in favor of a possible persistence of the virus in blood of healthy individuals. Further studies will be needed in order to explore both the prevalence and potential clinical impact of KIPyV/WUPyV on infected hosts. J. Med. Virol. 85:1444-1446, 2013. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc

HLA-DRB1 frequencies of the Comorian population and their genetic affinities with Sub-Saharan African and Indian Oceanian populations

Background: Ethnic-historic sources have considered the Comorian population to be the result of an amalgamation of African, Arabian and Southeast Asian groups. Aim: This study seeks to determine the genetic relationships and contributions from Sub-Saharan Africa and Indian Oceania and to reconstruct past migration events. Subjects and methods: The human leukocyte antigen (HLA) polymorphism of a Comorian population was described and analysed. Results: Genetic distances and multidimensional scaling analyses showed complex patterns of genetic differentiation in the Indian Oceanian area as a result of continuous gene flow occurring within the past 2500 years. Nevertheless, the Comorian genetic pool appears to be a mix of Bantu-speaking and Arab populations as testified to by admixture estimations of almost 50-60% and 27-33%, respectively. Conclusion: The Comorian population may represent the eastern limit of the recent and massive eastward Bantu expansion. In contrast to the population from Madagascar (Merina), only a restricted influence of Austronesian populations was found

No evidence of xenotropic murine leukaemia virus-related virus in French blood donors.

Letter to Edito

Human gyrovirus in healthy blood donors, france.

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HLA-DRB1 frequencies of the comorian population and their genetic affinities with sub-saharian African and indian oceanian populations

Ethnic-historic sources have considered the Comorian population to be the result of an amalgamation of African, Arabian and Southeast Asian groups. AIM: This study seeks to determine the genetic relationships and contributions from Sub-Saharan Africa and Indian Oceania and to reconstruct past migration events. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: The human leukocyte antigen (HLA) polymorphism of a Comorian population was described and analysed. RESULTS: Genetic distances and multidimensional scaling analyses showed complex patterns of genetic differentiation in the Indian Oceanian area as a result of continuous gene flow occurring within the past approximately 2500 years. Nevertheless, the Comorian genetic pool appears to be a mix of Bantu-speaking and Arab populations as testified to by admixture estimations of almost 50-60% and 27-33%, respectively. CONCLUSION: The Comorian population may represent the eastern limit of the recent and massive eastward Bantu expansion. In contrast to the population from Madagascar (Merina), only a restricted influence of Austronesian populations was found