Plasma metagenomics reveals regional variations of emerging and re-emerging pathogens in Chinese blood donors with an emphasis on human parvovirus B19

Zhao Mengyi; Li Yuhui; Gao Zhan; Liu Anqing; Li Yujia; Li Shilin; Gao Lei; Lan Yue; Huang Mei; Wan Jianhua; He Weilan; Mao Wei; Cai Jie; Zhou Jingyu; Yin Yijing; Guo Yanli; Zhong Qiulei; Huang Yang; Chen Limin; Fan Zhenxin; He Miao

doi:10.1016/j.onehlt.2023.100602

Plasma metagenomics reveals regional variations of emerging and re-emerging pathogens in Chinese blood donors with an emphasis on human parvovirus B19

One Health. 2023 Jul 13:17:100602. doi: 10.1016/j.onehlt.2023.100602. eCollection 2023 Dec.

Authors

Zhao Mengyi^{1

2}, Li Yuhui^{1

2

3}, Gao Zhan^{1

2}, Liu Anqing^{1

2}, Li Yujia^{1

2}, Li Shilin^{1

2}, Gao Lei^{1

2}, Lan Yue⁴, Huang Mei⁵, Wan Jianhua⁶, He Weilan⁷, Mao Wei⁸, Cai Jie⁹, Zhou Jingyu¹⁰, Yin Yijing¹¹, Guo Yanli¹², Zhong Qiulei^{1

2}, Huang Yang^{1

2}, Chen Limin^{1

2}, Fan Zhenxin⁴, He Miao^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ Institute of Blood Transfusion, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Chengdu, China.
² Sichuan Blood Safety and Blood Substitute International Science and Technology Cooperation Base, Chengdu, China.
³ Shaanxi Blood Center, Institute of Xi'an Blood Bank, Xi'an, China.
⁴ College of Life Sciences, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
⁵ Mianyang Blood Center, Mianyang, China.
⁶ Urumqi Blood Center, Urumqi, China.
⁷ Guangxi Blood Center, Liuzhou, China.
⁸ Chongqing Blood Center, Chongqing, China.
⁹ Nanjing Blood Center, Nanjing, China.
¹⁰ Jiangsu Blood Center, Jiangsu Institute of Medical Biological Products, Nanjing, China.
¹¹ Dehong Blood Center, Dehong, China.
¹² Mudanjiang Blood Center, Mudanjiang, China.

Abstract

At present, many infectious pathogens, especially emerging/re-emerging pathogens, exist in the blood of voluntary blood donors and may be transmitted through blood transfusions. However, most of Chinese blood centers only routinely screen for HBV, HCV, HIV, and syphilis. We employed metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS) to investigate the microbiome in healthy voluntary blood donors to help assess blood safety in China by identifying infectious pathogens presented in donations that could lead to transfusion-acquired infections. We collected 10,720 plasma samples from voluntary blood donors from seven blood centers in different cities during 2012-2018 in China. A total of 562 GB of clean data was obtained. By analyzing the sequencing data, it was found that the most commonly identified bacteria found in the healthy blood were Serratia spp. (5.0176%), Pseudomonas spp. (0.6637%), and Burkholderia spp. (0.5544%). The principal eukaryote were Leishmania spp (1.3723%), Toxoplasma gondii (0.6352%), and Candida dubliniensis (0.1848%). Among viruses, Human Parvovirus B19 (B19V) accounts for the highest proportion (0.1490%), followed by Torque teno midi virus (0.0032%) and Torque teno virus (0.0015%). Since that B19V is a non-negligible threat to blood safety, we evaluated the positive samples for B19V tested by mNGS using quantitative polymerase chain reaction, Sanger sequencing, and phylogenetic analysis to achieve a better understanding of B19V in Chinese blood donors. Subsequently, 9 (0.07%) donations were positive for B19V DNA. The quantitative DNA levels ranged from 5.58 × 10² to 7.24 × 10⁴ IU/ml. The phylogenic analyses showed that prevalent genotypes belonged to the B19-1A subtype, which disclosed previously unknown regional variability in the B19V positivity rate. The investigation revealed that many microbes dwell in the blood of healthy donors, including some pathogens that may be dormant in the blood and only cause disease under specific conditions. Thus, investigating the range and nature of potential pathogens in the qualified donations provided a framework for targeted interventions to help prevent emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases.

Keywords: Blood donor; Blood safety; Emerging and re-emerging infectious pathogens; Human parvovirus B19; Metagenomic next generation sequencing.