hhv-6 dna and antibody detection in plasma and pbmc of multiple sclerosis patients in north of iran

abstract background and aims: multiple sclerosis (ms) is defined by the presence of inflammatory demyelinating plaques in the central nervous system (cns). it has been indicated that human herpes virus 6 (hhv-6) may play role in pathogenesis of ms. the aim of this study was to determine the presence of hhv-6 dna and anti hhv-6 igg in ms patients and controls. materials and methods: blood samples from 59 patients with ms and 59 healthy controls were collected. dna extraction and real-time pcr based on (syber green) were done in the peripheral blood mononuclear cells (pbmcs) and in plasma specimens. anti-hhv-6 igg was measured by elisa technique. demographic and clinical data were collected and entered in spss 16 and analyzed. results: hhv-6 dna was found in the plasma sample of 1 (1.7%) of 59 ms patients. there was no hhv-6 dna in pbmcs of the ms patients and controls and in plasma of control group. anti- hhv-6 igg antibody was present in 84.7% of ms patients and 82.1% of control group. conclusion: there was no significant relation based on presence of hhv-6 dna and antibody between ms patients and controls in north of iran.