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Quantitative HHV-6B antigenemia test for the monitoring of transplant patients

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Abstract

Human herpesvirus-6 (HHV-6) infection, mostly caused by variant B, is common after transplantation. Here, we report a new modified method using an HHV-6B glycoprotein IgG antibody, OHV-3, and attempt to quantify the HHV-6 antigenemia after liver transplantation. Twenty-four liver transplant recipients were frequently monitored by the HHV-6 antigenemia test, which detects the HHV-6B virion protein in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC). HHV-6B antigens were now retrospectively demonstrated using a glycoprotein OHV-3 IgG antibody in the immunoperoxidase staining from the same specimens and quantified as positive cells/10,000 PBMC. The results were confirmed and quantified by DNA hybridization in situ. Altogether, 206 blood specimens were analyzed. During the first six months, HHV-6 antigenemia was detected in 17/24 (71%) recipients by using the HHV-6B virion antibody. In total, 37% (77/206) of specimens were positive with the virion antibody and 39% (78/201) by the OHV-3 antibody. The peak number of OHV-3-positive cells in the PBMC varied from 5 to 750/10,000 (mean 140/10,000). The OHV-3 antibody was useful to quantify the HHV-6B antigenemia. The findings of the HHV-6B quantitative antigenemia using the OHV-3 antibody correlated well with the previous qualitative HHV-6 antigenemia assay, and can be used as an alternative quantitative method in the monitoring of HHV-6 in transplant patients.

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Acknowledgments

We want to acknowledge the support of the HHV-6 Foundation for providing the OHV-3 MAB, the hybridoma, which was donated by Prof. K. Yamanishi. The OHV-3 monoclonal antibody is available, free of charge, to other transplantation investigators for research purposes from the HHV-6 Foundation Reagents Repository.

This study was supported by grants from the Sigrid Jusélius Foundation (to K. Höckerstedt and I. Lautenschlager) and the Helsinki University Hospital Research Funds (to I. Lautenschlager).

The authors thank Marjatta Palovaara for the technical assistance and Stephen Venn and Courtney Devin for correcting the English text.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Virology, HUSLAB, Helsinki University Hospital and University of Helsinki, FIN-00290, Helsinki, Finland

    R. Loginov, T. Karlsson & I. Lautenschlager

  2. Department of Surgery, Division of Transplantation and Liver Surgery, and Transplant Unit Research Laboratory, Helsinki University Hospital and University of Helsinki, FIN-00290, Helsinki, Finland

    R. Loginov, T. Karlsson, K. Höckerstedt & I. Lautenschlager

  3. HHV-6 Foundation, 277 San Ysidro Road, Santa Barbara, CA, USA

    D. Ablashi

  4. Transplant Unit Research Laboratory, Helsinki University Hospital, Meilahti, P-Floor PL 340, FIN-00029 HUS, Helsinki, Finland

    R. Loginov

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  1. R. Loginov
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  2. T. Karlsson
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  3. K. Höckerstedt
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  4. D. Ablashi
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  5. I. Lautenschlager
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Correspondence to R. Loginov.

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Loginov, R., Karlsson, T., Höckerstedt, K. et al. Quantitative HHV-6B antigenemia test for the monitoring of transplant patients. Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis 29, 881–886 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10096-010-0923-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10096-010-0923-1

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