Host origin determined by the skin-tropic human polyomavirus genotypes and its relationship with inflammatory skin diseases

2021 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 19K17928
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career Scientists
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: Basic Section 54030:Infectious disease medicine-related
• Research Institution: Kochi University
• Principal Investigator: Hashida Yumiko 高知大学, 教育研究部医療学系基礎医学部門, 助教 (00767999)
• Project Period (FY): 2019-04-01 – 2022-03-31
• Keywords: ウイルス / 皮膚 / DNA型

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Human skin microbes have been associated with various skin diseases. To date, most studies on skin microbiome have focused on the bacterial population and less is known about resident skin viruses such as human polyomaviruses (HPyVs), their genomic variations among ethnic groups, and their association with skin disorders.
In this study, we investigated the genotypes of three skin-tropic polyomaviruses, Merkel cell polyomavirus, human polyomavirus 6, and 7, using swabs collected from the skins of healthy individuals and Japanese patients with inflammatory skin diseases. Phylogenetic analyses showed two major clades that were ethnologically related to variant genotypes of HPyVs prevalent in the skin, compared with white and Asian/Japanese individuals. The viral strains obtained from our patients were all of the Asian/Japanese clade. These results suggest the existence of Asian/Japanese-specific strains genetically distinct from those prevalent in the skin of the white population.

Free Research Field

ウイルス学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

常在微生物研究は細菌に焦点をあてるものが多く、ウイルスについては知見が不足している。本研究では主要な皮膚常在ウイルスである３つのポリオーマウイルスについて、健常者および皮膚疾患患者での系統差が明らかとなり、不足している皮膚ウイルスのゲノム情報蓄積への貢献に加え、皮膚ウイルスと疾患との関連性へと迫る基盤データを提供することができた。さらに、系統差を簡便に判別できる特異的領域を見出したことから、皮膚常在ウイルスゲノムの法医学的利用への展開も期待できる。