Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2011 Sep 30;6(1):15.
doi: 10.1186/1750-9378-6-15.

Parasite infection is associated with Kaposi's sarcoma associated herpesvirus (KSHV) in Ugandan women

Katie Wakeham  1   2 , Emily L Webb  3 , Ismail Sebina  1 , Lawrence Muhangi  1 , Wendell Miley  4 , W Thomas Johnson  2 , Juliet Ndibazza  1 , Alison M Elliott #  1   5 , Denise Whitby #  4 , Robert Newton #  2   6
Affiliations

Parasite infection is associated with Kaposi's sarcoma associated herpesvirus (KSHV) in Ugandan women

Katie Wakeham et al. Infect Agent Cancer. .

Abstract

Background: Immune modulation by parasites may influence susceptibility to bacteria and viruses. We examined the association between current parasite infections, HIV and syphilis (measured in blood or stool samples using standard methods) and antibodies against Kaposi's sarcoma herpesvirus (KSHV), measured by ELISA, in 1915 stored plasma samples from pregnant women in Entebbe, Uganda.

Results: Seroprevalence of KSHV was higher in women with malaria parasitaemia (73% vs 60% p = 0.01), hookworm (67% vs 56% p = 0.001) and Mansonella perstans (69% vs 59% p = 0.05); seroprevalence increased with increasing intensity of hookworm infection (p < 0.001[trend]). No associations were found for HIV, five other parasites or active syphilis. These effects were not explained by socioeconomic status or education.

Conclusions: Specific parasite infections are associated with presence of antibodies against KSHV, perhaps mediated via their effect on immune function.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Bouvard V, Baan R, Straif K, Grosse Y, Secretan B, El Ghissassi F, Benbrahim-Tallaa L, Guha N, Freeman C, Galichet L, Cogliano V. A review of human carcinogens--Part B: biological agents. Lancet Oncol. 2009;10:321–322. doi: 10.1016/S1470-2045(09)70096-8. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Engels EA, Biggar RJ, Marshall VA, Walters MA, Gamache CJ, Whitby D, Goedert JJ. Detection and quantification of Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus to predict AIDS-associated Kaposi's sarcoma. AIDS. 2003;17:1847–1851. doi: 10.1097/00002030-200308150-00015. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Laney AS, Dollard SC, Jaffe HW, Offermann MK, Spira TJ, Gunthel CJ, Pellett PE, Cannon MJ. Repeated measures study of human herpesvirus 8 (HHV-8) DNA and antibodies in men seropositive for both HHV-8 and HIV. AIDS. 2004;18:1819–1826. doi: 10.1097/00002030-200409030-00011. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Laney AS, Cannon MJ, Jaffe HW, Offermann MK, Ou CY, Radford KW, Patel MM, Spira TJ, Gunthel CJ, Pellett PE, Dollard SC. Human herpesvirus 8 presence and viral load are associated with the progression of AIDS-associated Kaposi's sarcoma. AIDS. 2007;21:1541–1545. doi: 10.1097/QAD.0b013e3282202b7d. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Merat R, Amara A, Lebbe C, de The H, Morel P, Saib A. HIV-1 infection of primary effusion lymphoma cell line triggers Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) reactivation. Int J Cancer. 2002;97:791–795. doi: 10.1002/ijc.10086. - DOI - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources