Publication

Mucosal shedding of human herpesvirus 8 in men

Citation

Pauk J, Huang M, Brodie SJ, Wald A, Koelle DM, Schacker T, Celum C, Selke S, Corey L. Mucosal shedding of human herpesvirus 8 in men. N Engl J Med. 2000, 343: 1369-78.

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Epidemiologic studies suggest that human herpesvirus 8 (HHV- 8) is sexually transmitted among men who have sex with men; however, the mode of transmission is unclear. METHODS: To evaluate the patterns of shedding of HHV-8, we obtained mucosal-secretion samples from a cohort of HHV-8-seropositive men who had sex with men and had no clinical evidence of Kaposi's sarcoma. Quantitative polymerase-chain- reaction (PCR) assays, in situ PCR assays, and in situ RNA hybridization were used to identify potential sources of infectious HHV- 8. RESULTS: We detected HHV-8 in at least one mucosal sample from 30 of 50 men who were seropositive for HHV-8 (60 percent). Overall, HHV-8 was detected in 30 percent of oropharyngeal samples, as compared with 1 percent of anal and genital samples (P