Human polyomavirus 6 (HPyV6) is a virus of the polyomavirus family that infects human hosts. It was discovered in 2010 and is a component of the skin flora in healthy adults.[1]
All known human polyomaviruses are fairly common in healthy adult populations and are usually asymptomatic. In studies that profile polyomavirus seroprevalence, or prevalence of detectable antibodies against viral proteins indicating either past or present exposure in immunocompetent adults, estimates of HPyV6 prevalence have ranged from approximately 60–85%, with evidence of low prevalence among children and increasing prevalence with age.[1][3][4][5][6] The age-dependent pattern of seroprevalence featuring a decline at around six months old is consistent with the transmission of maternal antibodies.[3] A study of cutaneous viruses in men found prevalence of HPyV6 DNA—indicating actively replicating virus—at around 12%.[7] Another similar study reported HPyV6 DNA prevalence at around 30%, with 24% showing persistent viral shedding over time.[8]
Clinical manifestations
As with many recently discovered human polyomaviruses, the clinical significance of HPyV6 is poorly characterized. Attempts to detect polyomaviruses in a variety of tumor types have consistently found that HPyV6 is either absent or present at very low viral loads, indicating that it is unlikely to be causally related to the tumor.[8]
HPyV6, and the closely related HPyV7, have been linked to skin rashes known as pruritic and dyskeratotic dermatoses in immunocompromised patients in case reports, though a causal association has not yet been established.[9][10]
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