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  • Title: The first decade of human retroviruses: a nomenclature for the clinician.
    Author: Lucey DR.
    Journal: Mil Med; 1991 Oct; 156(10):555-7. PubMed ID: 1660967.
    Abstract:
    The decade of the 1980s has provided at least 10 terms for human retroviruses, of which five are currently recognized as defining distinct human infectious disease agents. Of these five, three are human T-cell lymphotropic viruses (HTLV-I, HTLV-II, HTLV-V) and two are human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV-1, HIV-2). HIV-1 and HIV-2 can cause the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), whereas HTLV-I, HTLV-II, and HTLV-V do not. HTLV-I can cause a T-cell leukemia/lymphoma as well as a progressive myelopathy. Disease(s) caused by HTLV-II and HTLV-V have yet to be conclusively established. Screening of the blood supply in the United States is currently designed to detect two of these retroviruses (HIV-1, HTLV-I). This review seeks to clarify the nomenclature of human retroviruses as we begin the second decade of their recognition. This is a clarification of the nomenclature for the human retroviruses, now know as HIV-1, HIV-2, HTLV-I, HTLV-II, and HTLV-V. HIV-1 is the accepted cause of AIDS. It was formerly know as HTLV-III, LAV and ARV. HIV-2 is know to cause AIDS, was first reported in West Africa, but is now found in Europe, North and South America. Special EIA, Western Blot, polymerase chain reaction or virus isolation tests are needed to diagnose it, and it is not being screened in the U.S. Blood supply. HTLV-I was the 1st retrovirus shown to cause human disease, a T-cell leukemia/lymphoma and a myelopathy also known as tropical spastic paraparesis. It can be diagnosed by enzyme immunoassay (EIA), Western blot, radioimmunoprecipitation assay and the definitive tests, polymerase chain reaction or virus isolation. Most infected persons do not have clinical illness. HTLV-II has been found in 2 patients with hairy cell leukemia, but the etiologic relationship is uncertain. HTLV-IV is now known to be a non-human primate virus, probably a laboratory contaminant from West Africa, and does not cause any known human disease. HTLV-V is another virus that targets the CD4+ T-lymphocyte; HTLV-V is thought to cause a cutaneous T-cell leukemia/lymphoma.
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