Classification of HHV-6A and HHV-6B as distinct viruses

Dharam Ablashi*, Henri Agut, Roberto Alvarez-Lafuente, Duncan A. Clark, Stephen Dewhurst, Dario DiLuca, Louis Flamand, Niza Frenkel, Robert Gallo, Ursula A. Gompels, Per Höllsberg, Steven Jacobson, Mario Luppi, Paolo Lusso, Mauro Malnati, Peter Medveczky, Yasuko Mori, Philip E. Pellett, Joshua C. Pritchett, Koichi YamanishiTetsushi Yoshikawa

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

269 Scopus citations

Abstract

Shortly after the discovery of human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6), two distinct variants, HHV-6A and HHV-6B, were identified. In 2012, the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV) classified HHV-6A and HHV-6B as separate viruses. This review outlines several of the documented epidemiological, biological, and immunological distinctions between HHV-6A and HHV-6B, which support the ICTV classification. The utilization of virus-specific clinical and laboratory assays for distinguishing HHV-6A and HHV-6B is now required for further classification. For clarity in biological and clinical distinctions between HHV-6A and HHV-6B, scientists and physicians are herein urged, where possible, to differentiate carefully between HHV-6A and HHV-6B in all future publications.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)863-870
Number of pages8
JournalArchives of Virology
Volume159
Issue number5
DOIs
StatePublished - May 2014

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