Correlation of HTLV-1 Tax genetic diversity with HTLV-1 associated myelopathy/tropical spastic paraparesis progression and HTLV-1a genotypes in an HTLV-1 endemic region in Argentina

✍ Scribed by Alena Mayo Iñiguez; René Gastaldello; Koko Otsuki; Marcos Balangero; Filipe Carvalho Costa; Carlos Remondegui; Ana Carolina Paula Vicente; Sandra Gallego

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 2010
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 72 KB
• Volume: 82
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0146-6615
• DOI: 10.1002/jmv.21833

✦ Synopsis

Abstract

The oncoprotein Tax was characterized genetically from a large cohort of human T‐cell lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV‐1) seropositive individuals from the most endemic region of HTLV‐1‐associated myelopathy/tropical spastic paraparesis (HAM/TSP) and HTLV‐1 infection in Argentina, the province of San Salvador de Jujuy. Sixteen HAM/TSP patients and 47 HTLV‐1 healthy carriers were evaluated. Six Tax genetic polymorphisms were identified and observed in 70.8% of healthy carriers and 62.5% of HAM/TSP patients. Tax genetic polymorphisms were not associated with clinical status but A8344C polymorphism statistically provide a borderline protective effect of HAM/TSP outcome. Nucleotide diversity in healthy carriers was 0.00549, whereas HAM/TSP virus population revealed a low diversity of 0.00379, suggests a positive selection for Tax protein conservation in this group. It is concluded that tax genetic polymorphisms do not increase the risk of developing HAM/TSP in this endemic region. However, in spite of the low prevalence of HTLV‐1aB genotype, statistical analysis revealed an important correlation of tax genetic signatures with HTLV‐1aA trans‐continental subgroup. J. Med. Virol. 82:1438–1441, 2010. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.