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Human polyoma viruses and disease with emphasis on clinical BK and JC

Raghavender Boothpur1, Daniel C Brennan

  • 1Barnes-Jewish Hospital, St. Louis, MO, United States.

Journal of Clinical Virology : the Official Publication of the Pan American Society for Clinical Virology
|January 12, 2010
PubMed

Insights

Human polyoma viruses like JC and BK are common and usually latent. Reactivation in immunocompromised individuals can cause severe diseases, including progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy and BK virus-associated nephropathy.

Area of Science:

  • Virology
  • Immunology
  • Infectious Diseases

Background:

  • Polyoma viruses are widespread in mammals, with five known human types: JC virus (JCV), BK virus (BKV), WU polyomavirus (WUPyV), KI polyomavirus (KIPyV), and Merkel cell polyomavirus (MCPyV).
  • JCV and BKV, identified decades ago, are the primary causes of human polyoma virus-associated diseases, with seroprevalence in 50-80% of the human population.
  • While infections are typically acquired in childhood and asymptomatic in immunocompetent individuals, these viruses can establish lifelong latent infections.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review the clinical significance of human polyoma viruses, focusing on JCV and BKV.
  • To elucidate the pathogenesis of diseases caused by polyoma virus reactivation under immunosuppression.
  • To highlight the diagnostic and management challenges associated with these infections.

Main Methods:

  • Review of existing literature on human polyoma viruses, their epidemiology, pathogenesis, and associated clinical manifestations.
  • Analysis of case studies and clinical data related to JCV and BKV infections.
  • Discussion of the impact of immunosuppression on viral reactivation and disease progression.

Main Results:

  • Reactivation of latent JCV and BKV under severe immunosuppression can lead to severe, life-threatening conditions.
  • Neurotropic JCV reactivation causes progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML), a fatal demyelinating CNS disease.
  • Urotheliotropic BKV reactivation results in BK virus-associated nephropathy (BKVAN), a significant cause of graft loss in kidney transplant recipients.

Conclusions:

  • Human polyoma viruses, particularly JCV and BKV, pose significant health risks upon reactivation in immunocompromised hosts.
  • Early recognition of JCV and BKV-associated diseases is crucial for patient management and improving outcomes.
  • Currently, no effective antiviral therapies exist for polyoma virus infections, emphasizing the need for further research and development.

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