Human immunodeficiency virus type 2 infection associated with AIDS in West Africa.
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.
Clavel
F
F
Mansinho
K
K
Chamaret
S
S
Guetard
D
D
Favier
V
V
Nina
J
J
Santos-Ferreira
M O
MO
Champalimaud
J L
JL
Montagnier
L
L
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
D000914:Antibodies, Viral; D015483:HIV Antibodies