Since both HHV-6 and EBV have been associated with an increased risk of autoimmune disease development, a group at the American University of Beirut studied whether viral DNA might be capable of triggering IL-17, a cytokine associated with autoimmune disease. They injected BALB/c mice intraperitoneally with either EBV or HHV-6A DNA. They found that both IL-17 and IL-23 were markedly elevated.
Pediatric drug hypersensitivity cases with HHV-6 reactivation have a more severe disease and longer hospital stays
A group at the University of Pennsylvania performed a retroactive study of 29 pediatric patients hospitalized with drug hypersensitivity reactions and found that those who reactivated with HHV-6 had longer lengths of stay (11.5 days vs. 5. days) and more severe illness. They were not able to determine the impact of steroid administration in HHV-6 positive patients.
Heart failure worsens in patients with persistent HHV-6B positive biopsies
Numerous case reports and studies have now tied HHV-6 to myocarditis and cardiomyopathies. To further investigate this relationship, investigators from one of the top cardiology clinics in Europe performed a study to determine the outcome of patients discovered to have HHV-6 in their cardiac tissue during the initial biopsy screen.
ApoE4+ epilepsy patients have higher HHV-6B viral loads and more seizures
A team of Chinese investigators led by Dr. Jin-Mei Li at West China Hospital has identified a possible synergy between a polymorphism of Apolipoprotein E (ApoE) and HHV-6B infection, resulting in a higher viral load and seizure frequency in these patients.
High HHV-6B viral loads found in a subset of epilepsy brain resections
Investigators at the University of Bonn Medical Center in Germany have screened 346 fresh-frozen brain tissue resections from temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) patients for all nine herpesviruses as well as for RNA viruses including Paramyxovirinae, Phleboviruses, Enteroviruses, and Flavivirus, using qPCR. HHV-6B was the only virus identified.
Cleveland clinic group finds important miRNA for HHV-6A
Investigators led by Eain Murphy of Cleveland Clinic have identified a viral microRNA (miRNA) for HHV-6A, named miR-U86, that targets the HHV-6A intermediate early gene U86.
Interview with Dr. Pitt Niehusmann: HHV-6 & MTLE
Pitt Niehusmann has completed the largest study to date on the question of whether viruses play a role in refractory mesial temporal lobe epilepsy (MTLE), with 346 samples analyzed. We asked Pitt a few questions about his work.
New breakthrough in understanding HHV-6 cell tropism
Bhupesh Prusty and Thomas Rudel of University of Wuerzburg, Germany, in collaboration with Dr. Yasuko Mori of Japan, have shed new light on the long-standing mystery of HHV-6 cell tropsim.
RANBP2 mutation tied to HHV-6 acute encephalopathy
Two new reviews conclude that HHV-6 acute necrotizing encephalopathy is tied to a mutation of the RANBP2 gene.
CiHHV-6A is the dominant virus in malignancy and inflammatory disease cases, while ciHHV-6B is the dominant virus in myocarditis cases
A sequencing study led by Ursula Gompels of London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, found that 95% (19/21) of Czech ciHHV-6 malignancy and inflammatory disease patients had ciHHV6A while 65% (13/20) of a German myocarditis cohort had ciHHV-6B. The authors propose that this divergence suggests different disease links for the two viruses.
Special Issue on Roseoloviruses!
The December 2014 issue of Current Opinions in Virology features a “Special Section on Roseoloviruses.” Top experts in the field contributed a set of 14 reviews that span a wide range of critical topics encompassing the molecular biology and the
Infants with congenital HHV-6 infection have lower Bayley scores at 12 months
ciHHV-6 infants score 4 points lower than controls on the Bayley Mental Development Index
Prevalence of betaherpesviruses in Sub-Saharan Africa
A group from University College London and the University of Zambia has reported that 20.5% of hospitalized infants were positive for HHV-6B, second only to CMV (24.3%). In contrast to previous studies, HHV-6A was found in only 0.3% of patients.
UK study reports ciHHV-6 not associated with classical Hodgkin’s lymphoma
Scottish study finds inheritance of ciHHV-6 does not increase the risk of developing cHL
HHV-6 DNA found in the spinal fluid of 8.8% of infants evaluated for encephalitis
Tehran University of Medical Sciences reports HHV-6 DNA in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples of 8.8% of 114 infants suspected of encephalitis.