First Detection of Human Polyomaviruses in HIV Patients with Suspected Neurological Disease in Montería, Colombia

Objective: The objective is to establish the presence of JC and/or BK polyomavirus in HIV patients with symptoms of encephalitis and/or meningitis. Methodology: From September 2009 to December 2011, a prospective study was conducted. 34 HIV patients with symptoms consistent with encephalitis and/or meningitis were included. The work was conducted in 3 hospitals in the city of Monteria. Viral DNA extraction was performed on samples of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) using a commercial kit (Quiagen, USA). The detection of BKV and JCV was performed by multiplex realtime PCR (LightMix®, Roche Diagnostics, Germany) with primers specific for the short t antigen gene fragment, labeled probes and one internal control. Results: In 9 (26%) of 34 patients included in the study, JCV virus was detected; only 1 (3%) patient had coinfection with JCV/BKV. The mortality rate was 3%. The cytochemical examination of CSF in positive patients presented average values: 40.7 mg/dL glucose, 171.66 mg/dL protein, 19.8 mm3 leukocytes, and 109.8 mm3 erythrocytes. Conclusion: The findings demonstrate that JCV and BKV have a significant occurrence in HIV patients with CSF infections in Monteria.