Cytomegalovirus Antibody Titers Research Articles

Elevated stress-responsive biomarkers are associated with HIV acquisition in young women in rural South Africa: A HPTN 068 case cohort study.

Biological markers of stress have been associated with HIV progression and pathogenesis but not with HIV incidence. We sought to determine if elevated stress-responsive biomarkers would be associated with incident HIV among adolescent girls and young women (AGYW). We conducted a case-cohort study within the HIV Prevention Trials Network (HPTN) 068 study among 949 AGYW in South Africa. Cases were AGYW who tested HIV-positive during the eight-year follow-up. Unmatched controls were randomly selected from the HIV-negative population at enrollment. Dried blood spots from cases and controls were tested from enrollment (2011-2012) for C-reactive protein (CRP), herpes simplex virus type-1 (HSV-1) antibody titers, and cytomegalovirus (CMV) antibody titers. Cox proportional hazards models estimated the association between each biomarker and time to incident HIV. Compared to AGYW with the lowest CRP levels, those with medium and high CRP levels had a higher hazard ratio (HR) of incident HIV (HR: 1.45, 95% CI: 0.95, 2.21; HR: 1.50, 95% CI: 0.98,2.30, respectively), although not statistically significant. The relative hazard of incident HIV was also higher among AGYW who were CMV seropositive vs. seronegative (low antibodies HR: 2.18, 95% CI: 1.2,3.87; medium HR: 2.25, 95% CI: 1.28,3.95; high HR: 1.78, 95% CI: 0.99,3.21). Those with the highest HSV-1 antibody levels experienced an increased hazard of HIV compared to those who were HSV-1 seronegative (HR: 1.58, 95% CI: 1.03,2.44). Biological stress may increase AGYW's susceptibility to HIV acquisition through changes in immune function, viral infection, and increased biological vulnerability to disease.

Resources and lymphocyte terminal maturity among older adults.

Women's financial resources were associated with more terminal maturity in natural killer lymphocytes, generally associated with loss of proliferative potential, during the "Great Recession". This preregistered analysis expanded on that finding in a longitudinal design including both genders and examining the role of cytomegalovirus (CMV) serostatus. Older adults (N = 138, 57% women) were assessed longitudinally during 2012-2017; including self-reported psychological, social, financial, and status-skill resources, CMV antibody titers and serostatus, and assessment of T and natural killer lymphocyte terminal maturity (LTM). Neither total nor financial resources were associated with LTM. Adjusting only for age, more psychological resources (e.g., meaning, hope, humor) were associated with lower T LTM (percent: γ = -1.11 [-1.78, -.44]; number: γ = -.99 [-1.70, -.27]). There were no significant interactions with age, gender, or CMV serostatus; however, additionally adjusting for serostatus reduced the effect of psychological resources (percent: γ = -.41 [-93, .12]; number: (γ = -.40 [-.94, .13]). Outside the context of the "Great Recession", psychological resources but not financial resources were associated with terminal maturity in T cells, a relationship related to CMV serostatus. Further studies in different and more diverse samples, and in different eras, are needed to understand what resources are most protective against immunological aging, when, and for whom. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Antibodies to cytomegalovirus are elevated in myasthenia gravis

Myasthenia gravis (MG) is an autoimmune disease characterised by muscular degeneration and autoantibodies to components of the neuromuscular junction. Development of MG is thought to occur from a combination of genetic and environmental factors, and viral infections have been suggested to be involved in the onset of MG through molecular mimicry and/or chronic inflammation. In this work, we analysed sera from MG patients for antibodies to members of the human herpes virus family and other selected pathogens to determine the virus antibody status in the sera of these patients. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, western blotting and line blotting analyses using MG serum pools showed an association between elevated IgG antibody titers to cytomegalovirus (CMV) and MG. These results were replicated using individual serum samples, and showed significant differences in CMV antibody titer between MG patients and healthy controls. Other viruses did not show the same tendency.

Advanced baseline immunosuppression is associated with elevated levels of plasma markers of fungal translocation and inflammation in long-term treated HIV-infected Tanzanians

BackgroundFor over a decade, antiretroviral therapy (ART) in resource-limited countries was only recommended for patients with advanced HIV disease. We investigated this group of patients in order to determine any relationship between degree of immunosuppression during treatment initiation and the subsequent levels of inflammatory biomarkers, reservoir size and plasma marker of fungal translocation after achieving long-term virological control.MethodsWe analyzed 115 virally suppressed (female 83.5%) and 40 untreated (female 70%) subjects from Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The size of HIV latent reservoir (proviral DNA copy) was determined using quantitative PCR. Inflammatory biomarkers; IL-6, IL-10, and soluble CD14 (sCD14), were measured using multiplex cytometric beads array. Antibody titers for Cytomegalovirus (CMV) and Epstein Barr virus (EBV), plasma level of 1-3-beta-d-Glucan (BDG) was measured using ELISA. High-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) was measured using nephelometric method.ResultsThe median age was 36 (IQR 32-44) and 47 (IQR 43–54) years in untreated and virally suppressed patients respectively. Median duration of treatment for virally suppressed patients was 9 years (IQR 7–12) and median baseline CD4 count was 147 cells/mm3 (IQR 65–217). Virally suppressed patients were associated with significantly lower plasma levels of IL-10, sCD14 and BDG (P < 0.05) when compared to untreated patients. However, plasma level of IL-6 was similar between the groups. Baseline advanced level of immunosuppression (CD4 < 100cells/cm3) was associated with significantly higher plasma level of IL-6 (P = 0.02), hsCRP (P = 0.036) and BDG (P = 0.0107). This relationship was not seen in plasma levels of other tested markers. Degree of baseline immunosuppression was not associated with the subsequent proviral DNA copy. In addition, plasma levels of inflammatory marker were not associated with sex, CMV or EBV antibody titers, treatment duration or regimen.ConclusionsOur data suggest that advanced immunosuppression at ART initiation is associated with severity of inflammation and elevated fungal translocation marker despite long term virological control. Further studies are needed to evaluate the potential increased burden of non-AIDS comorbidities that are linked to elevated inflammatory and fungal translocation markers as a result of the policy of HIV treatment at CD4 count < 200 cells/cm3 implemented for over a decade in Tanzania.

Cytomegalovirus infection associated with smaller dentate gyrus in men with severe mental illness

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection is usually inapparent in healthy adults but persists for life. Neural progenitor/stem cells are main CMV targets, and dentate gyrus (DG) a major neurogenic niche. Smaller DG volume has been repeatedly reported in severe mental illness (SMI). Considering the suggested immune system, blood–brain barrier and DG disturbances in SMI, we hypothesized that CMV exposure is associated with smaller DG volume in patients, but not healthy controls (HC). Due to the differential male and female immune response to CMV, we hypothesized sex-dependent associations. 381 adult patients with SMI (schizophrenia spectrum or bipolar spectrum disorders) and 396 HC were included. MRI scans were obtained with 1.5T Siemens MAGNETOM Sonata scanner or 3T General Electric Signa HDxt scanner, and processed with FreeSurfer v6.0. CMV immunoglobulin G antibody concentrations were measured by solid phase immunoassay. We investigated main and interaction effects of CMV status (antibody positivity/CMV + vs. negativity/CMV-) and sex on DG in patients and HC. Among patients, there was a significant CMV-by-sex interaction on DG (p = 0.009); CMV + male patients had significantly smaller DG volume than CMV- male patients (p = 0.001, 39 mm3 volume difference) whereas no CMV-DG association was found in female patients. Post-hoc analysis among male patients showed that the CMV-DG association was present in both hemispheres and in both patients with schizophrenia spectrum and bipolar spectrum disorders, and further, that higher CMV antibody titers were associated with smaller DG. No CMV-DG association was found in HC. The results indicate a DG vulnerability to CMV infection in men with SMI.

Effect of latent cytomegalovirus infection on the antibody response to influenza vaccination: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Latent infection with cytomegalovirus (CMV) is thought to accelerate aging of the immune system. With age, influenza vaccine responses are impaired. Although several studies investigated the effect of CMV infection on antibody responses to influenza vaccination, this led to contradicting conclusions. Therefore, we investigated the relation between CMV infection and the antibody response to influenza vaccination by performing a systematic review and meta-analysis. All studies on the antibody response to influenza vaccination in association with CMV infection were included (n = 17). The following outcome variables were extracted: (a) the geometric mean titer pre-/post-vaccination ratio (GMR) per CMV serostatus group, and in addition (b) the percentage of subjects with a response per CMV serostatus group and (c) the association between influenza- and CMV-specific antibody titers. The influenza-specific GMR revealed no clear evidence for an effect of CMV seropositivity on the influenza vaccine response in young or old individuals. Meta-analysis of the response rate to influenza vaccination showed a non-significant trend towards a negative effect of CMV seropositivity. However, funnel plot analysis suggests that this is a consequence of publication bias. A weak negative association between CMV antibody titers and influenza antibody titers was reported in several studies, but associations could not be analyzed systematically due to the variety of outcome variables. In conclusion, by systematically integrating the available studies, we show that there is no unequivocal evidence that latent CMV infection affects the influenza antibody response to vaccination. Further studies, including the level of CMV antibodies, are required to settle on the potential influence of latent CMV infection on the influenza vaccine response.

Levels of anti-CMV antibodies are modulated by the frequency and intensity of virus reactivations in kidney transplant patients.

Anti-CMV (cytomegalovirus) antibody titers are related to immune alterations and increased risk of mortality. To test whether they represent a marker of infection history, we analyzed the effect of viral reactivations on the production of specific antibodies in kidney transplant patients. We quantified CMV-DNAemia and antibody titers in 58 kidney transplant patients before transplantation and during a follow-up of 315 days (standard deviation, SD: 134.5 days). In order to calculate the intensity of the infection, we plotted the follow-up time of the infection on the x-axis and the number of DNA-CMV copies on the y-axis and calculated the area under the curve (CMV-AUC). The degree of T-lymphocyte differentiation was analyzed with flow cytometry, the cells were labelled with different monoclonal antibodies in order to distinguish their differentiation state, from naive T-cells to senescent T-cells. Peak viremia was significantly higher in patients experiencing a primary infection (VI) compared to patients experiencing viral reactivation (VR). Our data indicate that the overall CMV viral load over the course of a primary infection is significantly higher than in a reactivation of a previously established infection. Whereas patients who experienced an episode of CMV reactivation during the course of our observation showed increased levels of CMV-specific antibodies, patients who did not experience CMV reactivation (WVR) showed a drop in CMV antibody levels that corresponds to an overall drop in antibody levels, probably due to the continuing immunosuppression after the renal transplant. We found a positive correlation between the CMV viremia over the course of the infection or reactivation and the CMV-specific antibody titers in the examined patients. We also observed a positive correlation between anti-CMV titers and T-cell differentiation. In conclusion, our data show that anti-CMV antibody titers are related to the course of CMV infection in kidney transplant patients.

Cytomegalovirus Antibody Titers in Patients with Bechet's Disease

Purpose: We aimed to measure the titers of Immunoglobulin G (IgG) formed against latent microbial agents, such as Cytomegalovirus (CMV), in patients with Behcet’s disease (BD) and to compare with healthy population. Method: Forty-four patients with BD who were or were not receiving immunosuppressive treatment who had their CMV immunoglobulin G (IgG) titers measured and a sixty nine healthy people (control groups) were retrospectively examined. CMV IgG titers in the patients with Behcet’s disease and control groups were compared. Values above the cut-off (cut-off for CMV IgG: 6.00 IU/mL) were regarded as positive. Findings: At the time of the tests, 18.2% of patients were not receiving any treatment, 40.9% were receiving Colchicum treatment, and 40.9% were receiving immunosuppressive treatment. CMV IgG values were positive in all of our patients and CMV IgG titers were significantly lower in the patient group than in the control group (p=0.012). Conclusion: CMV may cause serious recurrent infections, particularly in patients who undergo immunosuppressive treatment. In the case of Behcet's disease, determining the initial titration values of CMV infection prior to immunosuppressive treatment may provide an early diagnosis and treatment for recurrent CMV infection.

Profile of differentially expressed Toll-like receptor signaling genes in the natural killer cells of patients with Sézary syndrome.

Sézary syndrome (SS), an aggressive and leukemic form of cutaneous T-cell lymphoma, usually results in shortened survival. Improving innate immunity in SS by targeting natural killer (NK) cells with Toll-like receptor (TLR) agonists could be an interesting modulatory strategy. We evaluated the NK cell populations in SS patients assessing activating and inhibitory receptors expression and profiled the differential expression of TLR signaling pathway genes in unstimulated NK cells and after TLR7/8 stimulation. We observed preserved CD56bright NK cells and a low percentage of CD56dim NK cells in the peripheral blood of SS patients compared to those in the healthy control group. Both NK cell populations showed down-modulation of NKG2C and NKG2D expression, which was associated with high serum levels of the soluble form of NKG2D ligands. In contrast, an expansion of “memory” CD57+ NKG2C+ NK cells and high cytomegalovirus antibody titers were detected in SS patients. Profiling of the TLR signaling genes in NK cells from SS patients showed an abundance of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in NK cells in the unstimulated condition, with mostly up-regulation of NFκB/JNK p38 pathway genes, but there was down-regulation of type I (IFN-α/β) and II (IFN-γ) interferon and IL-12A. After activation of NK cells with TLR7/8 agonist, the down-regulated genes correlated with the IFN response, and IL-12 became up-regulated, together with other antitumor factors. NK cell activation with a dual agonist for TLR7 and TLR8 is able to induce the expression of IFN-γ and type I IFN, which can improve immunity in SS patients.

Increased IL-15 Production and Accumulation of Highly Differentiated CD8+ Effector/Memory T Cells in the Bone Marrow of Persons with Cytomegalovirus.

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) has been described as a contributor to immunosenescence, thus exacerbating age-related diseases. In persons with latent CMV infection, the CD8+ T cell compartment is irreversibly changed, leading to the accumulation of highly differentiated virus-specific CD8+ T cells in the peripheral blood. The bone marrow (BM) has been shown to play a major role in the long-term survival of antigen-experienced T cells. Effector CD8+ T cells are preferentially maintained by the cytokine IL-15, the expression of which increases in old age. However, the impact of CMV on the phenotype of effector CD8+ T cells and on the production of T cell survival molecules in the BM is not yet known. We now show, using BM samples obtained from persons who underwent hip replacement surgery because of osteoarthrosis, that senescent CD8+ TEMRA cells with a bright expression of CD45RA and a high responsiveness to IL-15 accumulate in the BM of CMV-infected persons. A negative correlation was found between CMV antibody (Ab) titers in the serum and the expression of CD28 and IL-7Rα in CD8+ cells. Increased IL-15 mRNA levels were observed in the BM of CMV+ compared to CMV− persons, being particularly high in old seropositive individuals. In summary, our results indicate that a BM environment rich in IL-15 may play an important role in the maintenance of highly differentiated CD8+ T cells generated after CMV infection.

Effects of Lactobacillus casei Shirota ingestion on common cold infection and herpes virus antibodies in endurance athletes: a placebo-controlled, randomized trial.

AimsTo assess evidence of health and immune benefit by consumption of a Lactobacillus casei Shirota probiotic in highly physically active people.MethodsSingle-centre, population-based, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Daily ingestion of probiotic (PRO) or placebo (PLA) for 20 weeks for n = 243 (126 PRO, 117 PLA) university athletes and games players. Subjects completed validated questionnaires on upper respiratory tract infection symptoms (URS) on a daily basis and on physical activity status at weekly intervals during the intervention period. Blood samples were collected before and after 20 weeks of the intervention for determination of Epstein Barr virus (EBV) and cytomegalovirus (CMV) serostatus and antibody levels.ResultsURS episode incidence was unexpectedly low (mean 0.6 per individual) and was not significantly different on PRO compared with PLA. URS episode duration and severity were also not influenced by PRO. A significant time × group interaction effect was observed for plasma CMV antibody titres in CMV seropositive participants (p < 0.01) with antibody titre falling in the PRO group but remaining unchanged in the PLA group over time. A similar effect was found for plasma EBV antibody titres in EBV seropositive participants (p < 0.01) with antibody titre falling in the PRO group but increasing in the PLA group over time.ConclusionsIn summary, regular ingestion of PRO did not reduce URS episode incidence which might be attributable to the low URS incidence in this study. Regular ingestion of PRO reduced plasma CMV and EBV antibody titres, an effect that can be interpreted as a benefit to overall immune status.

T-Cell Activation Independently Associates With Immune Senescence in HIV-Infected Recipients of Long-term Antiretroviral Treatment.

Aging-associated noncommunicable comorbidities are more prevalent among human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV)-infected individuals than among HIV-uninfected individuals. Residual HIV-related chronic immune activation and senescence may increase the risk of developing comorbidities. Immune phenotyping, thymic output, and telomere length were assessed in 94 HIV-infected individuals who were aged >45 years and receiving antiretroviral therapy (ART; cases) and 95 age-matched uninfected controls. Cases had lower CD4(+) T-cell counts, higher CD8(+) T-cell counts, and increased levels of immune activation (ie, increased soluble CD14 [sCD14] level and increased percentages of CD38(+)HLA-DR(+) cells among both CD4(+) and CD8(+) T cells), regulatory T cells, and percentage of programmed cell death 1 (PD-1)-expressing cells among CD4(+) T cells. Immune senescence levels (ie, percentages of CD27(-)CD28(-) cells or CD57(+) cells) were comparable between cases and controls. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells from cases had shorter telomeres but increased single-joint T-cell receptor excision circle content and CD31(+) naive CD4(+) T cells. Although cytomegalovirus (CMV) antibody titers were higher in cases, CMV-specific T-cell responses were comparable between cases and controls. T-cell senescence in cases was independently associated with T-cell activation but not with CMV-specific immune responses. Despite long-term receipt of ART, HIV-infected adults had higher levels of immune activation, regulatory T cells, and PD-1-expressing CD4(+) cells and shorter telomeres. The increased soluble CD14 levels and percentage of CD38(+)HLA-DR(+) cells among CD4(+) T cells correlated with shorter telomeres and increased regulatory T-cell levels. This suggests that HIV influences immune function irreversibly, with several pathways that are persistently abnormal during effective ART. Therapies aimed at improving immune health during ART are needed.

The immunological footprint of CMV in HIV-1 patients stable on long-term ART.

BackgroundMost HIV-infected persons are cytomegalovirus (CMV) seropositive and retain latent virus that can be reactivated by immune activation. Their T cell populations express markers reflecting a late stage of differentiation, but the contributions of HIV and CMV to this profile are unclear. We investigated the immunological “footprint” of CMV in HIV patients who had a history of extreme immunodeficiency but were now stable on antiretroviral therapy (ART).ResultsTwenty CMV seropositive HIV patients >50 years old with nadir CD4 T-cell counts <200 cells/μl were studied after >12 years on ART. 16 CMV seropositive and 9 CMV seronegative healthy controls were included. CMV antibody titres were higher in HIV patients than controls (P < 0.001-0.003). Levels of soluble B-cell activating factor (sBAFF) were elevated in patients (P = 0.002) and correlated with levels of CMV antibodies (P = 0.03-0.002), with no clear relationship in controls. CD8 T-cell IFNγ responses to the IE1 peptide (VLE) remained elevated in HIV patients (P = 0.005). The CD57+CD45RA+CD27− phenotype of CD8 T-cells correlated with age (r = 0.60, P = 0.006), antibodies against CMV IE1 protein (r = 0.44, P = 0.06) and CD4 T-cell IFNγ response to CMV lysate (r = 0.45, P = 0.05).ConclusionsHumoral and T-cell responses to CMV remained elevated in HIV patients after >12 years on ART. Age and presence of CMV disease influenced CD8 T-cell phenotypes. Elevated levels of sBAFF may be a consequence of HIV disease and contribute to high titres of CMV antibody.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12979-015-0041-0) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

(291) Pain catastrophizing and cytomegalovirus antibody titers in adults with chronic pain

Chronic pain is physically and psychologically stressful. Individuals with chronic pain who tend to catastrophize often report more intense pain and emotional distress. It has been suggested that catastrophizing might be related to altered immunological responses to stress and pain; however, relatively little is currently understood regarding the relationships among catastrophizing, pain, and stress-related immune function. Latent herpesvirus reactivation, which is reflected by elevated herpesvirus antibody titers, provides a window into immune function/dysregulation.

Risk factors for cytomegalovirus reactivation after liver transplantation: can pre-transplant cytomegalovirus antibody titers predict outcome?

Despite preexisting cytomegalovirus (CMV) immunity, CMV-seropositive liver transplantation (LT) patients remain at risk of CMV infection. We hypothesized that the pre-transplant CMV antibody titer correlates with the risk of CMV reactivation. We conducted a retrospective study of CMV-seropositive LT recipients who did not receive anti-CMV prophylaxis from 2007 to 2013. The pre-transplant CMV immunoglobulin G (IgG) titer, which was measured with an enzyme-linked fluorescent immunoassay, was assessed as a risk factor for CMV reactivation with multivariate Cox proportional hazards models. The population consisted of 225 CMV-seropositive LT patients with a median age of 57 years (interquartile range, 47-62 years). The CMV titer distributions were as follows: <60 (40%) and ≥60 AU/mL (60%). The Kaplan-Meier estimates for CMV infection were 17% at 3 months, 18% at 6 months, and 19% at 12 months after transplantation. In a univariate analysis, a marginally significant increased risk of CMV infection was seen in LT recipients with a pre-transplant CMV IgG titer<60 AU/mL versus ≥60 AU/mL [hazard ratio (HR), 1.79; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.98-3.28 (P=0.06)]. This risk was statistically significant in the subgroup of recipients who received allografts from CMV-seropositive donors [HR, 2.21; 95% CI, 1.15-4.26 (P=0.02)]. In a multivariate analysis, a pre-transplant CMV IgG titer<60 AU/mL was significantly associated with CMV infection [HR, 3.11; 95% CI, 1.60-6.03 (P<0.001)]. The other risk factors were high body mass index, donor CMV seropositivity, prolonged cold ischemic time, use of an interleukin-2 receptor antagonist for induction therapy, and high numbers of post-transplant infections. A lower pre-transplant CMV antibody titer is significantly associated with CMV infection after LT. Quantitative measurement of CMV-specific humoral immunity may have a potential role in improving the CMV prevention strategy in CMV-seropositive LT recipients.

IFNγ⁻TNFα⁻IL2⁻MIP1α⁻CD107a⁺PRF1⁺ CD8 pp65-Specific T-Cell Response Is Independently Associated With Time to Death in Elderly Humans.

Persistent cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection has been suggested to be a major driving force in the immune deterioration and an underlying source of age-related diseases in the elderly. CMV antibody titers are associated with lower responses to vaccination, cardiovascular diseases, frailty, and mortality. CMV infection is also associated with shorter T-cell telomeres and replicative senescence. Although an age-related deregulation of CMV-specific T-cell responses could be an underlying cause of the relationship between CMV and immune defects, strong and polyfunctional responses are observed in elderly individuals, casting uncertainty on their direct role in age-related immune frailty. In this study, we longitudinally followed a cohort of healthy donors aged over 50 years, assessing their mortality rates and time to death during a 2-year period. Specific T-cell responses to the immunodominant antigen pp65 (IFNγ, TNFα, IL2, MIP1α, CD107a, and perforin production) were analyzed at the beginning of the 2-year observation period. A cytotoxic CD8 pp65-specific T-cell response, without cytokine or chemokine coexpression, was independently associated with all-cause mortality in these elderly individuals. This pp65-specific CD8 T-cell response could be a useful tool to identify individuals with depressed immune function and a higher risk of death.

Cytomegalovirus Antibody Titers Correlate With the Risk of CMV Reactivation in CMV-Seropositive Liver Transplant Recipients.

Cytomegalovirus Antibody Titers Correlate With the Risk of CMV Reactivation in CMV-Seropositive Liver Transplant Recipients.

An ELISA method to compute endpoint titers to Epstein–Barr virus and cytomegalovirus: Application to population-based studies

Indirect fluorescence analysis (IFA), the gold standard for determining herpesvirus antibody titers, is labor-intensive and poorly suited for large population-based studies. The enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) is used widely for measuring antiviral antibodies but also suffers drawbacks such as reduced specificity and the qualitative nature of the results due to limited interpretation of the optical density (OD) units. This paper describes a method to titer herpesvirus antibodies using microplates coated with virally-infected cells in which a standard curve, derived from IFA-scored samples, allowed OD units to be converted into titers. A LOOKUP function was created in order to report the data as traditional IFA-based (i.e., 2-fold) titers. The modified ELISA correlated significantly with IFA and was subsequently used to compute endpoint antibody titers to Epstein–Barr virus (EBV)-virus capsid antigen (VCA) and cytomegalovirus (CMV) in blood samples taken from 398 pregnant Hispanic women. Four women were EBV negative (1%), while 58 women were CMV negative (14.6%). EBV VCA antibody titers were significantly higher than CMV antibody titers (p<0.001). This method allows titering of herpesvirus antibodies by ELISA suitable for large population-based studies. In addition, the LOOKUP table enables conversion from OD-derived titers into 2-fold titers for comparison of results with other studies.

Anticytomegalovirus antibody titres are not associated with caregiving burden in younger caregivers.

This analysis examines whether or not younger caregivers, parents of children with developmental disabilities, differed from controls in terms of cytomegalovirus (CMV) seropositivity and CMV-specific antibody titre. Secondly, it examined whether any particular socio-demographics, health behaviours, or psychological/caregiving variables were associated with a higher CMV antibody titre among caregivers. Young caregivers and age- and sex-matched controls were compared with respect to their reported health behaviour and psychosocial status as well as latent virus control. One hundred and seventeen parents of children with developmental disabilities and 52 control parents completed standard measures of health behaviours, socio-demographics, perceived stress, depression and anxiety, caregiver burden, child problem behaviours. They also provided a blood sample assayed for the presence of CMV-specific antibody. Caregivers were no more likely to be CMV positive than controls and did not have higher antibody titres against CMV. In addition, there was no association between CMV antibody titre in seropositive caregivers and any of the psychological/caregiving variables. However, higher CMV antibody titres were significantly associated with a higher BMI, lower exercise levels, smoking, and lower fruit and vegetable and fat intake among seropositive caregivers. These data suggest that in the absence of immunosenescence, the chronic stress of caregiving is not sufficient to compromise the immune response to persistent CMV infection. However, an indirect mechanism to poorer health in caregivers might be via adoption of disadvantageous health behaviours in response to stress. Statement of contribution What is already known on this subject? Older caregivers of spouses with dementia show a poorer immune response against latent viruses when compared to age- and sex-matched controls. Younger parental caregivers of children with developmental disabilities show a poorer antibody response to vaccination. What does this study add? The study showed no association between caregiving stress and CMV antibody titre in young caregivers. There were higher CMV antibody titres in the caregivers who engage in unhealthy behaviours.

Human Cytomegalovirus Infection is Associated with Essential Hypertension in Kazakh and Han Chinese Populations

BackgroundWe aimed to study the association between cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection and hypertension in Kazakh and Han populations from Xinjiang Province, China.Material/MethodsWe analyzed data on 800 Kazakhs (467 hypertension patients and 333 healthy control participants) and 800 Hans (482 hypertension patients and 318 healthy control participants) aged 18–84 years old. ELISA and real-time quantitative PCR coupled with restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis were applied for determining CMV infection and glycoprotein B (gB) genotypes, respectively.ResultsSerologic evidence of CMV infection was obtained for 95.4% and 90.1% of the Kazakhs and Hans, respectively. The CMV seroprevalence rates among the Kazakh and Han participants with hypertension were 96.8% and 89.8%, respectively. Multiple logistic regression analyses revealed statistically significant independent associations between CMV seropositivity and hypertension in Kazakh males and between CMV antibody titers and hypertension in Hans; significant relationships also existed between CMV antibody titers and blood pressure in Hans. In Kazakhs, 3 CMV gB genotypes were identified: gB2 and genotype mixtures gB1+gB2 and gB2+gB3. In Hans, 4 CMV gB genotypes were identified: gB1, gB2, gB1+gB2, and gB2+gB3. Of the 4 studied genotypes, gB2+gB3 showed a significant independent association with hypertension in Kazakh females.ConclusionsCMV infection is associated with essential hypertension in Kazakh males and Hans in Xinjiang. CMV seropositivity is associated with hypertension in Kazakh males, and CMV antibody titers are associated with blood pressure and hypertension in Han males and females. Moreover, the CMV gB2+gB3 genotype mixture is associated independently with essential hypertension in Kazakh females.