Genotyping and Phylogenetic Analysis of Human Parvovirus B19 in Beta Thalassemia Major Patients

Abstract

Beta thalassemia major (βTM) is a hereditary condition that has previously been connected to blood-borne virus infections due to repeated transfusions of blood, Human parvovirus B19 (B19V) viral infection was proposed as a risk factor due to recurrent hemotherapy. Thus, this study aimed to investigate the prevalence, genotyping, and phylogenetic analysisof B19V in βTM patients. The study included 60 control volunteers and 120 βTM patients throughout November 2023 and March 2024. Blood samples were subjected to genomic DNA extraction, then nested PCR (nPCR) targeting fragments (VP1-VP2 region, 288 nt) was followed. Furthermore, genotyping and phylogenetic analysis were performed on DNA-positive samples by direct sequencing method. The study findings revealed that age was a risk factor, meanwhile, sex was not. The B19V was detected by nPCR represented 4.1% (5 out of 120), while none were found in the control group. B19V genotyping showed a predominance of Genotype 1a (100%). A unique accession number PP747257 has been deposited in GenBank to represent B19V for this study. It deserves to be noted that the investigated isolate was suited in the vicinity of three reference sequences deposited from the Netherlands (GenBank acc. no. JN211139.1, JN211160.1, and JN211182.1). In conclusion, despite the low rate of B19V prevalence among the βTM patients, this does not eliminate its potential risk in such a vulnerable group which may lead to severe consequences as a transient plastic crisis. Therefore, blood banks in Baghdad might need to consider screening for B19V especially when transfusion is intended for high-risk populations.