Open AccessHuman T-cell leukemia virus type 1 infection among Japanese immigrants and their descendants living in Southeast Brazil: A call for preventive and control responses
Author(s) -
Larissa Melo Bandeira,
Marco Antonio Moreira Puga,
Sabrina Moreira dos Santos Weis-Torres,
Grazielli Rocha de Rezende,
João Américo Domingos,
Tayana Serpa Ortiz Tanaka,
Gabriela Alves Cesar,
Youko Nukui,
Ana Carolina Vicente,
Jorge Casseb,
Juliana Yamashiro,
Aluísio Cotrim Segurado,
Murilo O. Saito,
João Renato Rebello Pinho,
Rivaldo Venâncio da Cunha,
Osnei Okumoto,
Silvia N. O. Uehara,
Ana Rita Coimbra Motta-Castro
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
plos neglected tropical diseases
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.99
H-Index - 135
eISSN - 1935-2735
pISSN - 1935-2727
DOI - 10.1371/journal.pntd.0009066
Subject(s) - tropical spastic paraparesis , virology , human t lymphotropic virus 1 , population , serology , medicine , leukemia , demography , immunology , virus , biology , t cell leukemia , antibody , myelopathy , environmental health , psychiatry , sociology , spinal cord
Human T-cell leukemia virus type 1 (HTLV-1) has worldwide distribution and is considered endemic in southwestern Japan. HTLV-1 infection has been associated with adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma (ATL) and HTLV-1-associated myelopathy/tropical spastic paraparesis (HAM/TSP) besides other diseases. This cross-sectional study aimed to investigate the prevalence, risk factors and molecular characterization of HTLV-1, among the world’s largest population of Japanese immigrants and their descendants outside of Japan, in São Paulo, Southeast Brazil, as well as to analyze the phylogenetic relationship among isolates of HTLV-1. From July to December 2017, 2,139 individuals from five Japanese associations were interviewed and submitted to blood collection. All serum samples were first tested for the presence of anti-HTLV-1/2 antibodies by ELISA and then peripheral blood from individuals with positive serological results were analyzed for the presence of HTLV-1 5’LTR proviral DNA. Partial sequencing of the 5’LTR region of HTLV-1 proviral DNA was performed by Sanger. The prevalence of HTLV-1 infection was 5.1% (CI 95%: 4.2–6.0). In the multiple logistic regression model, HTLV-1 infection was associated with age ≥ 45 years, female sex, being first and second-generation Japanese immigrants, and having sexual partners with history of blood transfusion. The phylogenetic analysis revealed that all HTLV-1 were classified as Cosmopolitan (1a) subtype. Of them, 47.8% were classified as Transcontinental (A) subgroup and 52.2% as belonging to the Japanese (B) subgroup. Although most HTLV-1-infected patients were asymptomatic (97.3%), blurred vision was associated with HTLV-1 infection. The high prevalence of HTLV-1 infection found in this studied population and especially the intra- and interfamily HTLV-1 transmission presents an urgent call for preventive and control responses of this infection in Brazil.