Detection of PARV4, genotypes 1 and 2, in healthy and pathological clinical specimens.

Botto, Sara; Bergallo, Massimiliano; Sidoti, Francesca; Terlizzi, Maria Elena; Astegiano, Sara; Ponti, Renata; Costa, Cristina; Cavallo, Rossana

The molecular epidemiology and tissue distribution of Human Parvovirus 4 (PARV4) and its variant PARV5 (Parvoviridae family) are poorly known. The aim of this study was to investigate the epidemiological role and prevalence of PARV4/5 by a nested-PCR on different clinical specimens, including blood samples from healthy donors, healthy and pathological skin samples, and bronchoalveolar lavages (BAL). Among blood specimens, 2/53 were positive; 3/37 and 23/105 of healthy and pathological skin specimens resulted positive, respectively, whereas no BAL was positive. PARV4/5 may be present in different healthy and pathological samples, suggesting the need for further investigating its tissue distribution.