Search

A high prevalence of human T-lymphotropic virus type I (HTLV-I) infection among Israeli Jews was previously reported. In the present study, screening for HTLV-I of Israeli Jews was expanded to 10 ethnic groups. HTLV-I antibodies were tested by the particle agglutination assay, ELISA, and by Western blot as a confirmatory method. The HTLV-I proviral genome was tested by nested PCR with tax primers (SK43/SK44 and Tr101/Tr102). The PCR tests were carried out in all seropositive subjects and the seronegative family members of the seropositives subjects in the Iranian population. Sixty-eight of the 1,679 subjects (4.1%) were found to be seropositive. The Jews originating from Mashhad had the highest infection rate of 60/306 (20%). Of the 479 Iranian non-Mashhadi Jews, 6 (1.3%) were seropositive. Of the 894 non-Iranian Israelis, only 2 (0.2%) were seropositive. HTLV-I proviral DNA was found in the peripheral blood lymphocytes of 66 out of 68 seropositive subjects and 6 out of 75 seronegative subjects. Sixty out of 123 (49%) Mashhadi Jews and 8 out of 14 (57%) non-Mashhadi Iranian Jews were PCR-positive. Three out of three seropositive non-Iranian Israelis were PCR positive. One non-Iranian Israeli (who originated from Ukraine) without family connections to the Iranian Jews was also PCR-positive. One hundred eighteen saliva samples (84 from subjects of Mashhadi origin, 31 from Iranian origin, and 4 of other origins) were also screened. Antibodies for HTLV-I were found in 23 out of 46 saliva samples from the individuals with particle agglutination (PA) and/or PCR-positive findings in blood. Twenty out of 23 PA-positive saliva samples also contained the proviral DNA. It is concluded that HTLV-I infection in Israel is mainly limited to Jews originating from Iran (most of them from Mashhad) and their family members.

Human T-cell lymphotrophic virus type I (HTLV-I), is a member of the oncogenic retroviruses family endemic in several parts of the world and also recently identified in the Jewish Mashhadi population who immigrated from Iran to Israel. The virus is the causative agent of adult T-cell leukemia (ATL) and a chronic myelopathy known both as tropical spastic paraparesis (TSP) or HTLV-I associated myelopathy (HAM). The known modes of HTLV-I transmission are by sexual intercourse, from mother to child in breast milk, via blood transfusion, and by sharing of needles by parenteral drug users. In the present study we examined the presence of HTLV-I provirus genomic DNA by nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and by DNA hybridization in mouthwash samples obtained from 13 Mashhadi-born Iranian Jews with spastic paraparesis associated with HTLV-I, 4 Mashhadi-born Iranian Jews asymptomatic carriers for HTLV-I and 21 healthy controls. Proviral HTLV-I DNA was detected by mouthwash PCR in 12 of 17 HTLV-I infected subjects (71%) but in none of 21 controls. Proviral DNA was also detected in mouthwash samples using HTLV-I probe by dot blot hybridization assay. The presence of HTLV-I proviral DNA in whole saliva may suggest a possible transmission of the virus via saliva and explain the increased rate of infection in elderly Mashhadi-Jewish population.

High prevalence of human T-cell lymphotropic virus type I (HTLV-I) infection and disease has been identified among Iranian-born Mashhadi Jews, an ethnically segregated, highly inbred population. To determine the origin and genetic diversity of HTLV-I in this group, 1,039 bp spanning selected regions of the HTLV-I gag, pol, env and pX genes were enzymatically amplified and sequenced directly from DNA of five Mashhadi Jews (three with spastic myelopathy and two asymptomatic carriers). Alignment and comparison of these sequences with cosmopolitan and Australo-Melanesian topotypes of HTLV-I indicated that the HTLV-I strains from Mashhadi Jews, which were > or = 99.9% identical among themselves, exhibited considerable sequence similarity (> or = 99%) to HTLV-I strains from southern India, suggesting a common source of infection. Phylogenetic analysis, using the maximum parsimony method, was consistent with a single-source introduction of HTLV-I into the Mashhadi Jewish community.

The Mashhadi-Jewish community originating in Iran is a closed and ethnically segregated population with a unique history and a high rate of intrafamilial marriage among its members. A high risk of infection by human T-lymphotropic virus type I (HTLV-I) and of adult T-cell leukemia associated with such infection was found in this population. HTLV-I is also associated with a syndrome of progressive spastic paraparesis. We therefore evaluated the occurrence of HTLV-I infection and spastic paraparesis in Mashhadi-born Iranian Jews who immigrated to Israel. We examined 83 Mashhadi-born subjects (52 women, 31 men; mean age, 61 +/- 15.5 years) and 73 age-matched non-Mashhadi Iranian-born Jews. Blood samples were tested for HTLV-I antibodies by particle agglutination test. The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used to detect HTLV-I proviral DNA sequences from peripheral blood mononuclear cells. Fifteen Mashhadi-born Jews (18%) were both seropositive and PCR-positive for HTLV-I. Four HTLV-I-seronegative subjects were found to be positive for HTLV-I proviral DNA by PCR. Of the 19 HTLV-I-infected subjects (11 women, 8 men; mean age, 59 +/- 16 years), 13 (68%) had spastic paraparesis of varying severity. There were no signs of myelopathy in the Mashhadi-born subjects who were negative for HTLV-I proviral DNA by PCR. None of the non-Mashhadi Iranian Jews was seropositive or PCR-positive for HTLV-I proviral DNA, or had clinical signs of spastic paraparesis.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

The clinical and laboratory features of four Israeli patients with adult T-cell lymphoma-leukemia (ATL) are presented. In three of them evidence for human T-cell lymphotropic leukemia virus (HTLV-I) infection was obtained. Interestingly, all of the patients immigrated to Israel from the same regions in Iran. Except for lack of skin involvement, the clinical course was typical for ATL as described worldwide. This is the first report of ATL in an Iranian cohort. This observation suggests that Iranian patients with ATL-like illness should be studied for the presence of HTLV-I infection.