Claudia Filippone1, Edouard Betsem2, Patricia Tortevoye1, Olivier Cassar1, Sylviane Bassot1, Alain Froment3, Arnaud Fontanet4, Antoine Gessain1. 1. Institut Pasteur, Unité d'Epidémiologie et Physiopathologie des Virus Oncogènes, Département de Virologie, and CNRS, UMR 3569, Paris, France. 2. Institut Pasteur, Unité d'Epidémiologie et Physiopathologie des Virus Oncogènes, Département de Virologie, and CNRS, UMR 3569, Paris, France Faculté de Médecine et des Sciences Biomédicales, Université Yaoundé I, Yaoundé, Cameroun. 3. Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, Musée de l'Homme. 4. Institut Pasteur, Unité de Recherche et d'Expertise Epidémiologie des Maladies Emergentes, Département d'Infection et Epidémiologie Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers, Paris, France.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: HTLV-1 infection is endemic to Central African populations. The risk factors for HTLV-1 acquisition in humans via the interspecies transmission of STLV-1 (its simian counterpart) remain largely unknown. METHODS: We studied 269 individuals (254 men, 15 women) bitten by a nonhuman primate (NHP), mostly during hunting activities. These, Pygmies and Bantus, living in the southern Cameroonian rainforest, were matched for sex, age, and ethnicity with individuals from the same settlements reporting no NHP bites. HTLV-1 serology was performed by Western blot on plasma samples. PCR was carried out for HTLV-1 provirus on buffy-coat DNAs. The amplified products were sequenced and analyzed by phylogenetic analyses. RESULTS: HTLV-1 prevalence was 8.6% (23/269) in individuals with bites, vs 1.5% (4/269) in matched controls (P < .001). Moreover, HTLV-1 infection was linked to bite severity. The 23 HTLV-1-positive bitten individuals reported being bitten by a gorilla (17), chimpanzee (3), or small monkey (3). Thirteen (56%) were coinfected with a simian foamy virus known to be acquired through severe bites. Mother-to-child infection was excluded in 6 HTLV-1-infected bitten individuals. All the HTLV-1-positive hunters bitten by a gorilla or chimpanzee were infected with a subtype B strain similar to that present in apes from the same area. Two hunters bitten by small monkeys (C. agilis in one case) were infected with a HTLV-1 subtype F strain very similar to the STLV-1 strains present in such monkeys. CONCLUSIONS: These results strongly suggest ongoing direct zoonotic acquisition of STLV-1 in humans through severe NHP bites during hunting activities.
BACKGROUND:HTLV-1 infection is endemic to Central African populations. The risk factors for HTLV-1 acquisition in humans via the interspecies transmission of STLV-1 (its simian counterpart) remain largely unknown. METHODS: We studied 269 individuals (254 men, 15 women) bitten by a nonhuman primate (NHP), mostly during hunting activities. These, Pygmies and Bantus, living in the southern Cameroonian rainforest, were matched for sex, age, and ethnicity with individuals from the same settlements reporting no NHP bites. HTLV-1 serology was performed by Western blot on plasma samples. PCR was carried out for HTLV-1 provirus on buffy-coat DNAs. The amplified products were sequenced and analyzed by phylogenetic analyses. RESULTS:HTLV-1 prevalence was 8.6% (23/269) in individuals with bites, vs 1.5% (4/269) in matched controls (P < .001). Moreover, HTLV-1 infection was linked to bite severity. The 23 HTLV-1-positive bitten individuals reported being bitten by a gorilla (17), chimpanzee (3), or small monkey (3). Thirteen (56%) were coinfected with a simian foamy virus known to be acquired through severe bites. Mother-to-childinfection was excluded in 6 HTLV-1-infected bitten individuals. All the HTLV-1-positive hunters bitten by a gorilla or chimpanzee were infected with a subtype B strain similar to that present in apes from the same area. Two hunters bitten by small monkeys (C. agilis in one case) were infected with a HTLV-1 subtype F strain very similar to the STLV-1 strains present in such monkeys. CONCLUSIONS: These results strongly suggest ongoing direct zoonotic acquisition of STLV-1 in humans through severe NHP bites during hunting activities.
Authors: Arsène Mossoun; Sébastien Calvignac-Spencer; Augustin E Anoh; Maude S Pauly; Daniel A Driscoll; Adam O Michel; Lavry Grah Nazaire; Stefan Pfister; Pascale Sabwe; Ulla Thiesen; Barbara R Vogler; Lidewij Wiersma; Jean-Jacques Muyembe-Tamfum; Stomy Karhemere; Chantal Akoua-Koffi; Emmanuel Couacy-Hymann; Barbara Fruth; Roman M Wittig; Fabian H Leendertz; Grit Schubert Journal: J Virol Date: 2017-04-28 Impact factor: 5.103
Authors: Yoshimi Enose-Akahata; Breanna Caruso; Benjamin Haner; Emily Charlip; Govind Nair; Raya Massoud; Bridgette J Billioux; Joan Ohayon; William M Switzer; Steven Jacobson Journal: Retrovirology Date: 2016-08-12 Impact factor: 4.602