ABSTRACT
Parvovirus B-19, one of the parvoviruses known to infect humans, 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. Parvovirus B-19, discovered by Yvonne Cassart in 1970, 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, nonimmune hydrops fetalis, intrauterine death, and abortion. Cerebral hypoplasia in kittens and pseudo-Down’s syndrome in hamsters have been attributed to intrauterine parvovirus infection.
