Clinical significance of parvovirus B19 DNA in cutaneous biopsies

Abstract

Linked Article: Santonja et al. Br J Dermatol 2017; 177:1060–1065.

Cutavirus DNA in Malignant and Nonmalignant Skin of Cutaneous T-Cell Lymphoma and Organ Transplant Patients but Not of Healthy Adults

“…Of the overall 215 patients without skin cancer, only two (0.9%) harbored dermal CuV DNA and both were moderately immune suppressed due to transplantation; all other patients with dermal CuV DNA had skin cancer. The difference of dermal CuV-DNA prevalence between cancerous and non-cancerous patients was highly significant [6/44 (14. The classical human parvovirus B19 (B19V) has been shown to persist for life in most solid tissues including skin of healthy immunocompetent individuals [14][15][16][17]. Similarly, many animal parvoviruses persist in their host tissues conferring challenges in laboratory and other animal facilities [18][19][20][21].…”

Emerging Human Parvoviruses: The Rocky Road to Fame

“…It is particularly difficult to separate a causative chronic infection from mere persistence of viral DNA. B19V DNA was already shown in 1997 to remain in tissues long after primary infection, in synovia of both rheumatoid arthritis patients and trauma controls, and has since been detected in a multitude of tissues of both healthy and diseased individuals, including synovia, skin, tonsils, heart, and even bones and the brain, triggering numerous studies of unresolved disease associations (e.g., myocarditis, dilated cardiomyopathy, rheumatoid arthritis, and cancer) (55,(129)(130)(131)(132)(133)(134)(135)(136)(137)(138). Interestingly, B19V genotype 2 is no longer circulating in the population but can still be found in tissues of healthy adults born before 1970, whereas genotype 1 is found in tissues of both younger and older adults (130,131).…”

The clinical use of parvovirus B19 assays: recent advances

“…Viral DNA can be detected in liver, and in the heart the common presence of B19V DNA has raised attention on its potential role in the development of cardiomyopathies [42][43][44]. Viral DNA is commonly found in synovial tissues, thus with little informative content when trying to relate its presence to the development of rheumatologic diseases [27], and skin, with similar implication with respect to dermatological issues [45,46]. In all these instances, large-scale surveys have demonstrated the persistence of viral DNA in substantial fractions of sample populations, independently of clinical associations, so its mere detection cannot be assumed as a diagnostic criteria suggestive of a virus-driven pathological process.…”