Full annotation of viral metagenomics in different components from Chinese blood donors using next-generation sequencing

Abstract

Background - Emerging viruses in the blood of healthy/qualified donors can seriously affect transfusion safety. However, the virus characteristics in different healthy blood donors and blood components are still not fully understood.
Materials and methods - Buffy coat (BC) and plasma specimens were collected from 32 whole blood donors, and platelet (PLT) and BC specimens from 30 apheresis platelet donors to explore the full annotation of viral metagenomics in different blood components from Chinese blood donors using next-generation sequencing technology.
Results - The study detected 56 viruses in the plasma and BC groups of whole blood donors. The plasma group had a significantly higher viral abundance and more types of viruses than the BC group. We detected 20 viruses in the PLT and BC groups of apheresis platelet donors. Viral abundance and types were significantly lower in the BC group than in the PLT group. According to β-diversity analysis, the plasma group had a significantly different community structure and composition than the BC group.
Discussion - Viral nucleic acid is found in the blood of healthy Chinese blood donors, with the highest concentration in plasma, which could explain the distribution of viruses in the blood of healthy individuals.