ABSTRACT
Human parvovirus virus belongs to the family Parvoviridae, which includes two general DNA vertebrate viruses: genus parvovirus (autonomously replicating parvoviruses) and genus dependovirus (parvoviruses that require a helper virus, such as adenovirus or herpesvirus, for replication), and one genus of invertebrate viruses. B-19 is in the genus parvovirus, which includes a number of animal parvoviruses such as the canine parvovirus and feline panleukopenia virus. The parvoviruses tend to be species-specific; only adeno-associated parvoviruses (members of the dependovirus genus) and B-19 are known to infect humans. Animal parvoviruses are known to cause fetal infection, intrauterine death and abortion. Cerebral hypoplasia in kittens and pseudo-Down’s syndrome in hamsters have been attributed to intrauterine parvovirus infection.
