Molecular analysis of human T-cell lymphotropic virus type II from Wayuu Indians of Colombia demonstrates two subtypes of HTLV-IIb

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Abstract
Studies of the genetic heterogeneity of human T-cell lymphotropic virus type II (HTLV-II) have revealed the presence of two genetic subtypes, termedHTLV-IIa andHTLV-IIb. The HTLV-IIb subtype encodes an immunodominant epitope present at the C terminus of the extended Tax protein and, by using an LTR-based, restriction fragment-length polymorphism (RFLP) assay, can be further classified into IIb0-IIb5, with HTLV-IIb1 (Central Amerindian-like) and HTLV-IIb5 (North Amerindian-like) being characteristic subtypes for Native American Indians. To determine the antigenic and genetic heterogeneity among HTLV-II-infected South Amerindians, we used a Tax synthetic peptide immunoassay on serum, and RFLP and phylogenetic analysis on LTR sequences amplified from genomic DNA from four Wayuu Indians of Colombia. The Wayuu specimens displayed seroreactivity to the immunodominant epitope located in the extended Tax region, as predicted, and demonstrated genetic heterogeneity by the presence of both the IIb1 (Wyu1, Zuc31) and IIb5 (Wyu2, Zuc42) subtypes of HTLV-II. This genetic diversity was further supported by clustering of the Wyu1 and Wyu2 LTR sequences within separate phylogroups represented by the Guaymi Indian (IIb1) and North Amerindian (IIb5) sequences, respectively. Sequence analysis showed that major LTR regulatory motifs and thecis-acting repressive elements in the LTR RNA secondary structure were relatively conserved in both Wayuu subtypes, but the predicted secondary structure of therex response stem loop in the Wyu2 (IIb5) LTR sequence was 45 nucleotides (nt) and 95 nt longer than that observed in the Wyu1 (IIb1) and G12.1 (IIb1) LTR sequences, respectively. These results extend our knowledge of the genetic heterogeneity of HTLV-II in South Amerindians.