Human Herpesvirus 8 Genotype E, Peru | CDC EID

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Volume 16, Number 9–September 2010
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Human Herpesvirus 8 Genotype E in Patients with Kaposi Sarcoma, Peru
Olivier Cassar,1 Marie-Lise Blondot,1 Salim Mohanna, Gregory Jouvion, Francisco Bravo, Vicente Maco, Renan Duprez, Michel Huerre, Eduardo Gotuzzo, and Antoine Gessain
Author affiliations: Institut Pasteur, Paris, France (O. Cassar, M.-L. Blondot, G. Jouvion, R. Duprez, M. Huerre, A. Gessain); Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Paris (O. Cassar, M.-L. Blondot, R. Duprez, A. Gessain); and Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia, Lima, Peru (S. Mohanna, F. Bravo, V. Maco, E. Gotuzzo)

Suggested citation for this article

Abstract
To determine human herpesvirus 8 (HHV-8) K1 genotypes in patients with Kaposi sarcoma (KS) from Peru, we characterized HHV-8 in 25 KS biopsy samples. Our findings of 8 A, 1 B, 14 C, and 2 E subtypes showed high HHV-8 diversity in these patients and association between E genotype and KS development.
Human herpesvirus 8 (HHV-8; also known as Kaposi sarcoma–associated herpesvirus) is the etiologic agent of all forms of Kaposi sarcoma (KS) (1,2). In 2002, the number of KS cases worldwide was »65,000, nearly 1% of all diagnosed cancer cases (3). KS occurs commonly during HIV-1 infection (AIDS-KS); in transplant recipients; and in persons not infected with HIV, predominantly elderly men of Mediterranean and Middle Eastern origin (classic KS) or in children and adult men from eastern and Central Africa (endemic KS).

Sequence analysis of the highly variable open reading frame (ORF) K1 of HHV-8 has enabled the identification of 5 main HHV-8 molecular subtypes, A–E (4). A and C subtypes are prevalent in Europe, Mediterranean countries, the United States, northwestern People’s Republic of China, and southern Siberia; subtype B, in sub-Saharan Africa; and subtype D, in Japan and Oceania. Subtype E is found among Native Americans (5–9). To our knowledge, KS has been reported in patients infected by all HHV-8 subtypes, except E.

Recent studies demonstrated that classic KS is common in Peru and that AIDS-KS incidence is increasing because of the spread of HIV infection (10,11). Classic and epidemic KS occurred in patients of Amerindian origin (Quechuas) and in mestizos, reflecting the multiethnic origin of the Peruvian population.

A goal of our study was to determine the HHV-8 genotypes for a series of classic KS or AIDS-KS cases in Peru. We also aimed to report KS in patients infected by an E subtype.

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Suggested Citation for this Article
Cassar O, Blondot M-L, Mohanna S, Jouvion G, Bravo F, Maco V, et al. Human herpesvirus 8 genotype E in patients with Kaposi sarcoma, Peru. Emerg Infect Dis [serial on the Internet]. 2010 Sep [date cited].
http://www.cdc.gov/EID/content/16/9/1459.htm

Human Herpesvirus 8 Genotype E in Patients with Kaposi Sarcoma, Peru

DOI: 10.3201/eid1609.100381

1These authors contributed equally to this article.