Inherited chromosomally integrated human herpesvirus 6: regional variation in prevalence, association with angina, and identification of ancestral viral lineages in two large UK studies.

ABSTRACT: Tens of millions of people worldwide have inherited chromosomally integrated human herpesvirus 6 (iciHHV-6), yet we know little about the consequences. iciHHV-6-positive individuals inherit the genome of HHV-6A or HHV-6B in the germline, and viral genomes are therefore present in every nucleated cell. To investigate the epidemiology of iciHHV-6 in the UK, almost 32,000 individuals were screened from two volunteer research studies: the family-based Generation Scotland: Scottish Family Health Study (GS:SFHS) and the Breakthrough Generations Study (BGS). iciHHV-6 prevalence in GS:SFHS was, to our knowledge, higher than that in other large studies at 2.74% (647/23,637), with an iciHHV-6B prevalence of 2.55%. Scottish participants were more likely to be iciHHV-6B-positive than English (P

SUBMITTER: Wood ML 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12282103 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature