title: Human immunodeficiency virus type 2 infection associated with AIDS in West Africa.
abstract: We recently reported the isolation of a new retrovirus, termed human immunodeficiency virus type 2 (HIV-2), from two West African patients with the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). This virus is related to but distinct from the well-characterized AIDS retrovirus, human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1). We report here evidence of infection with HIV-2 in 30 patients, almost all from West Africa. Seventeen of them had a clinical syndrome indistinguishable from AIDS (7 of these 17 died). Others had either the AIDS-related complex or no HIV-related symptoms. All patients had serum antibodies reacting with HIV-2 in an indirect immunofluorescence assay. All serum tested contained antibodies reacting with the envelope glycoprotein of the virus in an immunoprecipitation assay. Cross-reactivity of serum antibodies with HIV-1 was detected in a minority of patients and varied according to the assay used. Retroviral isolates were obtained from the blood lymphocytes of 11 patients and were all identified as HIV-2 by nucleic acid hybridization; none hybridized with an HIV-1 probe. These findings indicate that some cases of AIDS in West Africa may be caused by HIV-2, but the extent of the spread of this virus and its clinical correlates will require careful epidemiologic investigation.
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Clavel
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Mansinho
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Chamaret
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Guetard
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Favier
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Nina
authors.forename: M O
authors.initials: MO
authors.lastname: Santos-Ferreira
authors.forename: J L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Champalimaud
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Montagnier
mesh_terms: D000386:AIDS-Related Complex / Q000382:microbiology; D000163:Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome / Q000382:microbiology*; D000354:Africa, Western; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000032:analysis; D003429:Cross Reactions; D005260:Female; D006678:HIV / Q000145:classification / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification; D015483:HIV Antibodies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male
chemical_list: D000914:Antibodies, Viral; D015483:HIV Antibodies