First study of the detection of Human Herpes Virus-8 and major blood-borne viruses in iranian patients with SLE: A cross-sectional study

Background: Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease caused by genetic and environmental factors such as viral infections. Genomic and serologic tests were applied to detect significant blood-borne viruses in SLE patients to determine whether there was a possible association between viral infections and SLE. Methods: Antibodies (Abs) against HHV-8, HCMV, EBV, HIV, HBV, and HCV in SLE patients suffering from SLE were assessed by ELISA. In addition, HHV-8 DNA and HIV-1 RNA were quantified by real-time PCR, and the HCV and HBV genomes were detected using nested PCR. Results: Compared to those in the control group, a high prevalence of anti-HHV-8 (p