title: Amplification of HTLV-1-related sequences among patients with neurological disorders in highly endemic Nagasaki: lack of evidence for association of HTLV-1 with multiple sclerosis.
abstract: We studied DNA sequences homologous to HTLV-1 in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) of 30 patients with neurological disorders in Kyushu, where HTLV-1 is highly endemic. The regions of HTLV-1 amplified by means of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) included U3, U5, gag, pol, env and pX. Our system specifically detected HTLV-1 sequences only from HTLV-1-positive cells and was sufficiently sensitive to detect one proviral copy per 10(3) PBMC. All PCR-positive cases were seropositive, including 4 cases of tropical spastic paraparesis/HTLV-1-associated myelopathy (TSP/HAM) (4/4), and one case each of myasthenia gravis (1/7) and multiple sclerosis (1/8). The PCR-positive rate of patients, excluding 4 TSP/HAM cases, was 8% (2/26), which is similar to the seroprevalence of the adult population in the area. The data suggest that multiple sclerosis is not associated with prototype HTLV-1.
authors.affiliation: Department of Bacteriology, Nagasaki University School of Medicine.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Nakayama
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Katamine
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kanazawa
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Shibuya
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kawase
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Moriuchi
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Miyamoto
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hino
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001483:Base Sequence; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000235:genetics*; D005260:Female; D005784:Gene Amplification; D015481:HTLV-I Antibodies / Q000032:analysis; D015490:HTLV-I Infections; D015368:Human T-lymphotropic virus 1 / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009103:Multiple Sclerosis / Q000209:etiology* / Q000382:microbiology; D009422:Nervous System Diseases / Q000382:microbiology*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction
chemical_list: D004279:DNA, Viral; D015481:HTLV-I Antibodies