ISSN 2756-3413
African Journal of Virology Research ISSN 3421-7347 Vol. 1 (3), pp. 049-054, March, 2007. © International Scholars Journals
Review
Human bocavirus: A new virus discovered by molecular techniques in respiratory samples
Bernhard Meyer, Adriano Huber and Philipp Calonder
Department of Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, Università Della Svizzera Italiana, Lugano, Switzerland.
*Corresponding author. E-mail: [email protected]
Accepted 12 January, 2007
Abstract
A new virus was discovered by molecular techniques in respiratory samples collected from young children with respiratory diseases in Sweden in 2005. The virus, named human bocavirus, is genetically related to the bovine parvovirus and the canine minute virus, both of which belong to the bocavirus genus of the parvoviridae family. Recent studies conducted in different countries have shown that HBoV is found in 1.5 - 19% of children with respiratory diseases. HBoV has been observed to be associated with a broad spectrum of both upper and lower respiratory tract diseases, more frequently related to lower respiratory diseases, one third of which is pneumonia. HBoV infection is of worldwide distribution, and a seasonal distribution with a peak in winter and spring is suspected. There is increasing evidence that HBoV is pathogenic for the human respiratory tract, especially in infants and young children, and HBoV has been detected from patients with gastroenteritis. However, given the frequent co-infection with bacterial or viral pathogens, the exact role played by this virus in human diseases still remains disputable. Further investigations, including population- based studies with controlled subjects, are needed to prove its pathogenic potential and epidemiologic patterns.
Key words: Respiratory virus, human bocavirus, parvovirus; HBoV; respiratory infection, children.