title: Human T lymphotropic virus (HTLV) type I and II DNA amplification in HTLV-I/II-seropositive blood donors of the French West Indies.
abstract: To confirm the presence of DNA from human T lymphotropic virus type I (HTLV-I), HTLV-II, or both in individuals found HTLV-I/II-positive through systematic screening of blood donations in Guadeloupe (French West Indies), 42 blood donors repeatedly positive for HTLV-I/II by ELISA were studied by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Three primer pairs (env, pol, tax) targeted on conserved regions of HTLV-I or -II sequences (or both) and six probes (two generic, two HTLV-I-specific, two HTLV-II-specific) were used in a multiplex PCR. HTLV-I sequences were detected in 31 individuals (74%). All 31 subjects positive by Western blot (WB) harbored HTLV-I sequences. Fifteen individuals (48%) were positive with the three primer pairs used, 10 (32%) with two, and 6 (20%) with one. Subjects indeterminate or negative by WB were all negative by PCR. No HTLV-II sequences were detected with specific probes. The results indicate the absence of HTLV-I and -II infection in individuals with indeterminate WB, the presence of HTLV-I DNA in individuals positive for WB in the French West Indies, and the absence of HTLV-II infection in the cohort.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Biologie Moléculaire, Institut National de Transfusion Sanguine, Paris, France.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Wattel
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mariotti
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Agis
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Gordien
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Prou
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Courouce
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Rouger
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Wain-Hobson
authors.forename: I S
authors.initials: IS
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: J J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Lefrère
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001483:Base Sequence; D001782:Blood Donors; D015342:DNA Probes / Q000737:chemistry; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000032:analysis* / Q000737:chemistry; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D015481:HTLV-I Antibodies / Q000097:blood; D015490:HTLV-I Infections / Q000175:diagnosis*; D015482:HTLV-II Antibodies / Q000097:blood; D015491:HTLV-II Infections / Q000175:diagnosis*; D015368:Human T-lymphotropic virus 1 / Q000235:genetics*; D015367:Human T-lymphotropic virus 2 / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D014900:West Indies
chemical_list: D015342:DNA Probes; D004279:DNA, Viral; D015481:HTLV-I Antibodies; D015482:HTLV-II Antibodies