Possible association of HTLV-I infection and dementia.
We report a Swedish patient with progressive dementia possibly associated with human T cell-lymphotropic virus type I (HTLV-I) infection. The clinical investigation revealed no typical sings of other neurological disorders. The patient was probably infected in East-Asia 35 years before onset of the disease. High titers of specific HTLV-I antibodies were detectable with solid-phase peptide ELISA in serum (1:1.600) and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) (1:20), and the CSF/serum anti-HTLV-I antibody ratio indicated intrathecal HTLV-I antibody synthesis. Western blot for HTLV-I and polymerase chain reaction with primers selected for the HTLV-I pol gene were positive in both peripheral blood and cerebrospinal fluid. HTLV-I antigen was also demonstrated after in vitro co-cultivation of mononuclear cells from peripheral blood. Thus, our findings indicate that HTLV-I infection also may be associated with dementia. In addition, this case report calls attention upon HTLV-I as a possible etiologic agent to neurological diseases in countries previously spared from the infection.
Lycke
J
J
Dept of Neurology, University of Gothenburg, Sahlgren's Hospital, Sweden.
Svennerholm
B
B
Svenningsson
A
A
Horal
P
P
Nordqvist-Brandt
E
E
Andersen
O
O
D015153:Blotting, Western; D001921:Brain / Q000098:blood supply / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000503:physiopathology; D002555:Cerebrospinal Fluid / Q000276:immunology; D002560:Cerebrovascular Circulation; D003704:Dementia / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D015481:HTLV-I Antibodies / Q000276:immunology; D015490:HTLV-I Infections / Q000150:complications* / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D011594:Psychometrics; D015899:Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon
D015481:HTLV-I Antibodies