Korean J Pediatr Infect Dis.  2005 Nov;12(2):108-113. 10.14776/kjpid.2005.12.2.108.

Prevalence of Antibodies to Human Herpesvirus 8 in Children

• Han TH
• Chung JY
• Kim SW

• KMID: 2440004
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.14776/kjpid.2005.12.2.108

Abstract

PURPOSE
Human herpsevirus 8(HHV-8), a gamma herpsevirus, was initially identified from Kaposi sarcoma(KS) lesions and has been known to be associated with several malignancies including Kaposi sarcoma. HHV-8 seroprevalence is variable by different geographic areas and populations. The prevalence of HHV 8 infection in Korean children is unclear. So, we investigated the prevalence of HHV-8 specific antibodies in healthy children in Seoul, Korea.
METHODS
Sera were obtained from 112 children(age 1~15 years, 64 males and 48 females) who visited our hospital for routine health checkup and used for investigating seroprevalence of anti-HHV-8 antibodies. An indirect immunofluorescent assay was used to detect the IgG antibodies to the lytic viral antigen(Biotrin, Dublin, Ireland). A peptide mix ELISA kit was used to detect the IgG antibodies to peptides specific for HHV-8 open reading frame (ORF)(Biotrin, Dublin, Ireland).
RESULTS
Of 112 children, 4 children younger than 6 years of age were seropositive to HHV-8[all 4(3.5%) were positive by IFA and 2(1.8%) were positive by ELISA].
CONCLUSION
These results suggest that the prevalence of antibody to HHV 8 in children in Korea is very low.

Keyword

Human herpesvirus 8; Children; Prevalence

MeSH Terms

Antibodies*
Child*
Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay
Herpesvirus 8, Human*
Humans*
Immunoglobulin G
Korea
Male
Open Reading Frames
Peptides
Prevalence*
Sarcoma, Kaposi
Seoul
Seroepidemiologic Studies
Antibodies
Immunoglobulin G
Peptides