HTLV-1 Proviral Load in Vaginal Fluid Correlates with Levels in Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells

HTLV-1 Proviral Load in Vaginal Fluid Correlates with Levels in Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells

The prevalence of human T-lymphotropic virus type-1 (HTLV-1) infection is higher in women, and sexual intercourse has been described as an important route of male-to-female transmission. The present study aimed to quantify HTLV-1 proviral load (PVL) in vaginal fluid, and to investigate correlations...

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Published in:Pathogens (Basel) Vol. 12; no. 5; p. 682
Main Authors: de Aquino Firmino, Alisson, Filho, Paulo Roberto Tavares Gomes, Martins, Adenilda Lima Lopes, Araújo, Thessika Hialla, Gois, Luana Leandro, da Silva Batista, Everton, Araújo, Jean Paulo Lacerda, Galvão-Castro, Bernardo, Grassi, Maria Fernanda Rios
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 05-05-2023
MDPI
Subjects:
Age
Asymptomatic
Blood
Blood cells
Body fluids
Brief Report
Central nervous system diseases
Correlation
Cytopathology
Diagnosis
Disease transmission
Females
Health aspects
Hereditary spastic paraplegia
HTLV-1
HTLV-I infections
Leukocytes (mononuclear)
Light microscopy
Lymphocytes
Measurement
Microbiota
Microorganisms
Optical microscopy
Patients
Peripheral blood mononuclear cells
Polymerase chain reaction
proviral load
Risk factors
Sexual behavior
Sexual intercourse
Sexually transmitted diseases
Software
Spinal cord
Tropical spastic paraparesis
Vagina
Vaginal mucosa
vaginal proviral load
Viremia
Brazil
HTLV-1
proviral load
vaginal proviral load
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Summary:The prevalence of human T-lymphotropic virus type-1 (HTLV-1) infection is higher in women, and sexual intercourse has been described as an important route of male-to-female transmission. The present study aimed to quantify HTLV-1 proviral load (PVL) in vaginal fluid, and to investigate correlations with PVL in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). In addition, cytopathological alterations and vaginal microbiota were evaluated. HTLV-1-infected women were consecutively recruited at a multidisciplinary center for HTLV patients in Salvador, Brazil. All women underwent gynecological examinations to obtain cervicovaginal fluid and venipuncture for blood collection. PVL, as measured by real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR), was expressed as the number of copies of HTLV-1/10 cells in blood and vaginal fluid samples. Light microscopy was used to assess cervicovaginal cytopathology and vaginal microbiota. In the 56 included women (43 asymptomatic carriers and 13 diagnosed with HTLV-1-associated myelopathy/tropical spastic paraparesis-HAM/TSP), mean age was 35.9 (SD ± 7.2) years. PVL was higher in PBMCs (median: 23,264 copies/10 cells; IQR: 6776-60,036) than in vaginal fluid (451.9 copies/10 cells; IQR: 0-2490) ( < 0.0001). PVL in PBMCs was observed to correlate directly with PVL in vaginal fluid (R = 0.37, = 0.006). PVL was detected in the vaginal fluid of 24 of 43 (55.8%) asymptomatic women compared to 12 of 13 (92.3%) HAM/TSP patients, = 0.02. Cytopathologic analyses revealed no differences between women with detectable or undetectable PVL. HTLV-1 proviral load is detectable in vaginal fluid and correlates directly with proviral load in peripheral blood. This finding suggests that sexual transmission of HTLV-1 from females to males may occur, as well as vertical transmission, particularly in the context of vaginal delivery.
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ISSN:2076-0817
2076-0817
DOI:10.3390/pathogens12050682