Abstract
Cross-species transmission of retroviruses is common in Cameroon. To determine risk for simian T-cell lympho- tropic virus (STLV) transmission from nonhuman primates to hunters, we examined 170 hunter-collected dried blood spots (DBS) from 12 species for STLV. PCR with generic tax and group-specific long terminal repeat primers showed that 12 (7%) specimens from 4 nonhuman primate species were infected with STLV. Phylogenetic analyses showed broad diversity of STLV, including novel STLV-1 and STLV-3 sequences and a highly divergent STLV-3 subtype found in Cercopithecus mona and C. nictitans monkeys. Screening of peripheral blood mononuclear cell DNA from 63 HTLV- seroreactive, PCR-negative hunters did not identify human infections with this divergent STLV-3. Therefore, hunter- collected DBS can effectively capture STLV diversity at the point where pathogen spillover occurs. Broad screening using this relatively easy collection strategy has potential for large-scale monitoring of retrovirus cross-species transmission among highly exposed human populations.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 175-184 |
Number of pages | 10 |
Journal | Emerging infectious diseases |
Volume | 15 |
Issue number | 2 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Feb 2009 |
Externally published | Yes |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Epidemiology
- Microbiology (medical)
- Infectious Diseases