Human herpes simplex virus-6 (HHV-6) detection and seroprevalence among Qatari nationals and immigrants residing in Qatar

Duaa W Al-Sadeq; Hadeel T Zedan; Nader Aldewik; Alaa Elkhider; Asalet Hicazi; Nadin Younes; Houssein H Ayoub; Laith Abu Raddad; Hadi M Yassine; Gheyath K Nasrallah

doi:10.1016/j.ijregi.2021.12.005

Human herpes simplex virus-6 (HHV-6) detection and seroprevalence among Qatari nationals and immigrants residing in Qatar

IJID Reg. 2021 Dec 16:2:90-95. doi: 10.1016/j.ijregi.2021.12.005. eCollection 2022 Mar.

Authors

Duaa W Al-Sadeq^{1

2}, Hadeel T Zedan^{1

3}, Nader Aldewik⁴, Alaa Elkhider³, Asalet Hicazi³, Nadin Younes³, Houssein H Ayoub⁵, Laith Abu Raddad⁶, Hadi M Yassine^{1

3}, Gheyath K Nasrallah^{1

3}

Affiliations

¹ Biomedical Research Centre, QU Health, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar.
² College of Medicine, QU Health, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar.
³ Department of Biomedical Science, College of Health Sciences, QU Health, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar.
⁴ Clinical and Metabolic Genetics Section, Paediatrics Department, Hamad General Hospital, Women's Wellness and Research Centre, Interim Translational Research Institute, Hamad Medical Corporation, College of Health and Life Science, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Doha, Qatar.
⁵ Mathematics Programme, Department of Mathematics, Statistics and Physics, College of Arts and Sciences, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar.
⁶ Infectious Disease Epidemiology Group, Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar, Cornell University, Doha, Qatar.

Abstract

Background: Human herpes simplex virus-6 (HHV-6) is the causative agent of exanthema subitum. Transmission mainly occurs through salivary secretions, yet blood transfusions and organ transplantations have also been reported as routes of transmission. Studies of seroprevalence of HHV-6 in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region and other parts of Asia are scarce. As such, this study aimed to estimate the seroprevalence of HHV-6 among healthy blood donors in Qatar.

Methods: In total, 620 healthy blood donors from different nationalities residing in Qatar, mainly from the MENA region and Southeast Asia, were tested using a commercial anti-HHV-6 immunoglobulin G (IgG) enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kit. In addition, HHV-6 DNA from randomly selected samples was tested and quantified using quantitative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction.

Results: Anti-HHV-6 IgG was detected in 71.7% (445/620) [95% confidence interval (CI) 68.2-75.3%] of the tested samples, while 24.3% (61/251) (95% CI 20.0-29.6%) had detectable HHV-6 viraemia. Only 22.5% of individuals with positive IgG status had detectable HHV-6 DNA in their blood, indicating a weak association between viraemia and IgG positivity (P=0.08). Furthermore, no significant difference was associated between HHV-6 viraemia and demographic characteristics, except for nationality.

Conclusion: The seroprevalence of HHV-6 in Qatar was found to be similar to rates reported in other parts of the world.

Keywords: Blood donors; HHV-6; Seroprevalence; Transfusion; Viraemia.