Human herpesvirus 6
| Human herpesvirus 6 | |
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| Electron micrograph of HHV-6 | |
| Virus classification | |
| Group: | Group I (dsDNA) |
| Order: | Herpesvirales |
| Family: | Herpesviridae |
| Subfamily: | Betaherpesvirinae |
| Genus: | Roseolovirus |
| Species | |
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Human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6) |
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Human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6)
Human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6) is the common collective name for human herpesvirus 6A (HHV-6A) and human herpesvirus 6B (HHV-6B). These closely related viruses are two of the nine herpesviruses known to have humans as their primary host.
HHV-6A and HHV-6B are double stranded DNA viruses within the betaherpesvirinae subfamily and of the genus Roseolovirus. HHV-6A and HHV-6B infect almost all of the human populations that have been tested.
HHV-6A has been described as more neurovirulent, and as such is more frequently found in patients with neuroinflammatory diseases such as multiple sclerosis.
HHV-6B primary infection is the cause of the common childhood illness exanthema subitum (also known as roseola infantum or sixth disease). Additionally, HHV-6B reactivation is common in transplant recipients, which can cause several clinical manifestations such as encephalitis, bone marrow suppression, and pneumonitis.
A variety of tests are used in the detection HHV-6, some of which do not differentiate the two species.
During 1986, Syed Zaki Salahuddin, Dharam Ablashi, and Robert Gallo cultivated peripheral blood mononuclear cells from patients with AIDS and lymphoproliferative illnesses. Short-lived, large, refractile cells that frequently contained intranuclear and/or intracytoplasmic inclusion bodies were documented. Electron microscopy revealed a novel virus that they named Human B-Lymphotrophic Virus (HBLV).
Shortly after its discovery, Ablashi et al. described five cell lines that can be infected by the newly discovered HBLV. They published that HSB-2, a particular T-cell line, is highly susceptible to infection. Ablashi's pioneering research concluded by suggesting that the virus name be changed from HBLV to HHV-6, in accord with the published provisional classification of herpes viruses.
Years later, HHV-6 was divided into subtypes. Early research (1992) described two very similar, yet unique variants: HHV-6A and HHV-6B. The distinction was warranted due to unique restriction endonuclease cleavages, monoclonal antibody reactions, and growth patterns.
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