New Blood Test Identifies All the Viruses to Which You Have Ever Been Infected

I doubt any of us can remember every single virus that we have ever contracted in our entire lives. Thanks to a new blood test dubbed VirScan, scientists can now identify all the viruses someone has ever been infected with in just one drop of blood. This new technology is able to identify prior exposure to 1000 strains of 206 different types of viruses. These 206 viruses represent almost all of the viruses known to infect humans. A team of scientists led by Dr. Stephen Elledge, professor of medicine and genetics at Harvard Medical School, published their VirScan findings this June in the journal Science.

Scientists have already conducted VirScan tests on 569 people from the United States, South Africa, Thailand and Peru. People had on average been exposed to ten different viruses out of a possible 206 types (these ten viruses are mostly of the flu, cold and gastrointestinal illness causing sort). Some subjects demonstrated exposure to as many as 25 different kinds of viruses. The researchers also found that geography plays a role in which viruses people are exposed to. People from South Africa, Peru and Thailand had antibodies for many more different types of viruses than their counterparts in the United States. "We don't know if this has to do with genetics of the people or the strains of the viruses that are out there" explains lead author Dr. Stephen Elledge. He adds that it may have "something to do with cultural habits or sanitation." Researchers were surprised to discover that people infected with HIV displayed antibodies to a greater number of viruses than people without HIV. The researchers are not sure why this is since they expected people with HIV to exhibit "diminished" immune system responses to viral infections.

Dr. Elledge believes that VirScan will enable scientists to "ask questions that just couldn't be asked before." For example, scientists could compare the viral histories of people with and without certain diseases to see if there are any remarkable differences between the two. This research could help scientists determine if viral infections play a role in the development of cancer, diabetes and chronic fatigue syndrome in humans. Vincent Racaniello, a microbiology and immunology professor at Columbia University (and not involved with VirScan's development), explains that "there are a lot of chronic diseases where we think a virus might be involved but we can't quite pinpoint it... ." Furthermore, Racaniello believes that VirScan "is going to be helpful" in formulating a connection between chronic disease and viruses. VirScan could also be used to help detect HIV and Hepatitis C early on since patients can go years without displaying any visible symptoms. Another potential use for VirScan is to assess the best time for children to be vaccinated. VirScan would be administered to a large population in order to determine at what age most children are exposed to various viruses.

In the next few years VirScan may become part of your yearly checkup. As of now, each blood test costs 25 dollars to perform, although the price may rise to generate profit if VirScan becomes commercially available. VirScan is not currently backed by any company but a patent for VirScan is in the works.

Sources:

Dennis, B. "This blood test can tell you every virus you've ever had." Washington Post. June 4, 2015.

Grady, D. "Every Virus a Person Has Had Can Be Seen in a Drop of Blood, Researchers Find." NY Times. June 4, 2015

Smith-Strickland, K. "Blood test can detect every virus you've ever had." Discover Magazine. June 4, 2015.

Williams, S. "New test could reveal every virus that's ever infected you." Science Magazine. June 4, 2015.

Photo:

Figure from the print summary of Xu et al., "Comprehensive serological profiling of human populations using a synthetic human virome" SCIENCE, 348:1105 (5 June 2015).