HTLV-2 horizontal and vertical transmission in a family from a Brazilian urban area: seroepidemiological, clinical and molecular study.
Human T cell lymphotropic virus type 2 (HTLV-2) has been shown to be endemic in Brazilian Indians and among intravenous drug users in urban areas, but transmission of this infection seems to be infrequent in the general population living in urban areas in Brazil. Six persons in three generations of a Brazilian family were evaluated to assess HTLV-2 transmission and its molecular features in the positive cases. The index was detected during screening (HTLV EIA) of donated blood in Fundação Hemominas, Belo Horizonte, Brazil. Confirmatory serological test and viral typing were performed by Western blotting and polymerase chain reaction. The family consisted of husband, wife (index case), three daughters, and the mother of the index case. The husband and one daughter were found positive, thus pointing to horizontal and vertical transmission. The husband was a truck driver, who reported casual sex during frequent traveling. The positive daughter was breast-fed for 3 months, as opposed to the remaining two (seronegative), who breast-fed for 1 month. The index case's mother was negative. To identify HTLV-2 subtype(s), phylogenetic analysis of the noncoding long terminal repeat region and part of the env and tax coding regions was performed. These new isolates from Belo Horizonte are related to subtype IIa but present a molecular variant with extended tax, previously reported in subtype IIc. Analyzing both LTR and env regions, the family's sequences clustered with isolates of Brazilian intravenous drug users and transfusion transmitted virus.
Fundação Centro de Hematologia e Hemoterapia de Minas Gerais (Hemominas), Minas Gerais, Brazil. bcorreacatalansoares@yahoo.com.br
Bernadette
B
Catalan-Soares
Edel Figueiredo
EF
Barbosa-Stancioli
Luiz Carlos J
LC
Alcantara
Anna Bárbara De F
AB
Carneiro-Proietti
Marina Lobato
ML
Martins
Maria Sueli
MS
Namen-Lopes
Bernardo
B
Galvão-Castro
Cibele Eponina Sanches
CE
Ferreira
Maria Cristina Ramos
MC
Costa
Sônia Regina
SR
Pinheiro
Fernando Augusto
FA
Proietti
D000328:Adult; D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D018562:Disease Transmission, Infectious; D005190:Family; D005260:Female; D015482:HTLV-II Antibodies / Q000097:blood; D015491:HTLV-II Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000635:transmission* / Q000821:virology; D015367:Human T-lymphotropic virus 2 / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D018445:Infectious Disease Transmission, Vertical; D008297:Male; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010802:Phylogeny; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies; D014505:Urban Population
D015482:HTLV-II Antibodies