Elevated levels of Merkel cell polyoma virus in the anophthalmic conjunctiva.

ABSTRACT: The human ocular surface hosts a paucibacterial resident microbiome and virome. The factors contributing to homeostasis of this mucosal community are presently unknown. To determine the impact of ocular enucleation and prosthesis placement on the ocular surface microbiome, we sampled conjunctival swabs from 20 anophthalmic and 20 fellow-eye intact conjunctiva. DNA was extracted and subjected to quantitative 16S rDNA PCR, biome representational karyotyping (BRiSK), and quantitative PCR (qPCR) confirmation of specific organisms. 16S ribosomal qPCR revealed equivalent bacterial loads between conditions. Biome representational in silico karyotyping (BRiSK) demonstrated comparable bacterial fauna between anophthalmic and intact conjunctiva. Both torque teno virus and Merkel cell polyoma virus (

SUBMITTER: Siegal N 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8319407 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature