High frequency of postnatal transmission of TT virus in infancy.
DNA of TT virus (TTV), a novel human circovirus, was tested for in 116 mother-infant pairs who had participated in the adult T-cell leukemia prevention program (APP) in Nagasaki, Japan, and refrained from breast-feeding. By polymerase chain reaction with Okamoto's seminested primers, 36 of the 115 (31%) mothers were positive. At the age of 6-8 months, 7 of 29 (24%) and 6 of 72 (8%) infants born to infected and uninfected mothers were positive, respectively (P = 0.047; RR, 2.90). Maternal TTV DNA load did not correlate with infantile infections. Since 99 of 100 (99%) cord blood samples were negative and all the mothers refrained from breast-feeding, the infantile TTV transmission would not be intrauterine or milk-borne. Between 6-8 and 12-21 months of age, 4 of 12 (33%) and 5 of 22 (23%) children born to infected and uninfected mothers turned positive, respectively (NS). At 12-21 months of age, 8 of 21 (38%) and 12 of 32 (38%) children born to infected and uninfected mothers were positive, respectively (NS). These results indicate that the TTV infection prevails in children at a frequency comparative to that in their mothers within the first 2 years of life, regardless of the maternal TTV status.
Kazi
A
A
Department of Virology, Faculty of Medicine, Tottori University, Yonago, Japan.
Miyata
H
H
Kurokawa
K
K
Khan
M A
MA
Kamahora
T
T
Katamine
S
S
Hino
S
S
D000328:Adult; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004266:DNA Virus Infections / Q000635:transmission* / Q000821:virology; D004267:DNA Viruses / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000097:blood; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D018445:Infectious Disease Transmission, Vertical; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods; D011247:Pregnancy; D011251:Pregnancy Complications, Infectious / Q000821:virology
D004279:DNA, Viral