The rate of detection of ZIKV RNA in semen in asymptomatic donors is not significantly different from the rate previously reported for symptomatic patients. Conclusions Our results that show a high percentage of detection of ZIKV RNA in the semen of asymptomatic men confirm that ZIKV is a new threat for reproductive medicine and should have important implications for assisted reproductive technology. for anti-ZIKV IgG antibodies and all except one tested positive for ZIKV IgM antibodies. The rate of detection of ZIKV RNA in semen in asymptomatic donors is not significantly different from the rate previously reported for symptomatic patients. Conclusions Our results that show a high percentage of detection of ZIKV RNA in the semen of asymptomatic men confirm that ZIKV is a new threat for reproductive medicine and should have important implications for Poliumoside assisted reproductive technology. We recommend that semen donations from men at risk for ZIKV infection should be tested for ZIKV RNA, regardless of symptoms of ZIKV infection. cellular cultures of semen are negative; is testing for ZIKV RNA or antibodies warranted for ART semen donations from men potentially exposed to ZIKV; and what is the impact of ZIKV infection on male fertility? To answer some of these questions, we tested longitudinally collected semen samples provided by asymptomatic blood donors who tested positive for ZIKV RNA during ZIKV outbreaks in Puerto Rico and Florida in 2016. Although the study is ongoing, we are reporting interim results because they could significantly impact guidelines for the prevention of sexual transmission of ZIKV and for policies for testing ART donations for ZIKV. Materials and methods Nucleic acid testing (NAT) of blood donations was implemented in Puerto Rico in April 2016 and in Florida beginning in August 2016 [6,7]. Routine NAT by RT-PCR was performed on plasma samples using the Roche (Basel, Switzerland) cobas? Zika test under a US Food and Drug Administration approved investigational protocol. Detection of IgM and IgG antibodies against ZIKV was performed as previously reported [7]. Donors that tested positive for ZIKV RNA in plasma were contacted and asked to provide additional research samples (whole blood, urine, semen and saliva) collected at different intervals (6C181 days) after the ZIKV NAT-positive index donations. Specimens were shipped overnight at ambient temperature to the Blood System Research Institute, San Francisco, CA, USA, where they were processed into frozen aliquots within 24 h of collection. Aliquots of 0.3 to 0.5 mL of semen Poliumoside were sent under code from the Blood System Research Institute on dry ice to the Institut Louis Malarde (Papeete, Tahiti, French Polynesia). Semen ZIKV RT-PCR, including RNA viral load determination, and cultures on Vero cells with immunofluorescent staining to detect potential replicating virus, were performed as previously reported [8]. The percentage of asymptomatic blood donors with ZIKV RNA-positive semen was compared using chi-squared test with the percentage obtained in symptomatic Puerto Rican patients (31/55 or 56.4%) reported in a previous Mouse monoclonal to HDAC3 study [3]. Poliumoside The study was approved by the ethics committee of the University of California San Francisco and supported by the Recipient Epidemiology and Donor Evaluation Study (REDS-III) Central Laboratory (NHLBI Contract No. HHSN268201100001I). Written consent was obtained from all participants before sample collection. Results Twenty-nine semen samples were available from 14 blood donors who tested positive for ZIKV RNA on plasma collected at the time of asymptomatic blood Poliumoside donations (Table 1). Among the 14 donors who submitted semen samples, five (35.7%) tested positive for ZIKV RNA (three from Puerto Rico and two from Florida). ZIKV RNA was detected in semen collected from 7 to 54 days after the index donations. Table 1 Results of plasma IgM/IgG and nucleic acid testing, semen nucleic acid testing (cycle threshold) and Zika virus RNA loads in semen cultures as indicating lack of risk for transmission following sexual or ART exposure. Assessing the risk of ZIKV transmission through semen donation is challenging due to the scarcity of data. Results reported in this interim analysis show Poliumoside a high percentage of detection of ZIKV RNA in semen from asymptomatic blood donors, which has clear implications for ART programmes and confirms that ZIKV is a new threat for reproductive medicine. There is an urgent need for licensed molecular tests to detect ZIKV RNA in semen, and systematic serological screening of semen donors should also be evaluated. Footnotes Transparency declaration The authors have declared that they have no conflicts of interest..
