Tehran University of Medical Sciences Iranian Journal of Microbiology 2008-3289 14 1 2022 02 20 Investigation of human parvovirus B19 prevalence in a large healthy umbilical cord blood donors 119 124 EN Hooman Ramezany Department of Immunology, Research Center of Blood Transfusion, High Institute for Research and Education in Transfusion Medicine, Tehran, Iran Maryam Kheirandish Department of Immunology, Research Center of Blood Transfusion, High Institute for Research and Education in Transfusion Medicine, Tehran, Iran Shahram Samiee Department of Immunology, Research Center of Blood Transfusion, High Institute for Research and Education in Transfusion Medicine, Tehran, Iran Mina Khosravifar Non-Communicable Diseases Research Center, Endocrinology and Metabolism Population Sciences Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Seyedeh Melika Hashemi Non-Communicable Diseases Research Center, Endocrinology and Metabolism Population Sciences Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran 2021 11 13 2021 12 20 Background and Objectives: Umbilical cord blood (UCB) was used to source hematopoietic stem cells in the past. Despite the apparent advantages of UCB transplantation, virus reactivation poses a considerable danger in allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). Human Parvovirus B19 is regarded as a potential threat to UCB contamination. This study aimed to evaluate the prevalence of parvovirus B19 in cord blood donors by Semi-Nested PCR. This study is the first large-scale report of the B19 DNA in cord blood donors in Iran. Materials and Methods: A total of 691 umbilical cord blood were collected under standard procedure. Then, DNA from buffy coat and plasma were extracted, and semi-nested PCR was performed for all samples. Results: Two out of 691 samples (0.29%) indicated viremia in plasma and buffy coat. Conclusion: In this line, designing and validating a quantitative PCR assay for detection, quantification, and discrimination of Human B19 DNA genotypes of cord blood donors is necessary to enhance the safety of this source of stem cells. https://ijm.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijm/article/view/3426 https://ijm.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijm/article/download/3426/1433