The type C retrovirus simian T-lymphotropic virus type III (STLV-III) has been isolated recently from immunodeficient macaque monkeys at the New England Regional Primate Research Center. The present studies were done to define the in vitro growth characteristics of this agent. STLV-III replicates efficiently in interleukin 2-dependent T-cell cultures of macaque peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL...

Serological inspection of Simian T-lymphotropic Virus Type 1 was conducted for a wild colony of Macaca fuscata, which was captured in the middle Honshu, Japan. The increase of positive rate after the juvenile stage with the positive rate reaching 100% (or 35/35) in youngster and adult stages, was observed. This finding suggests that, in contrast with human T-lymphotropic Virus Type 1, horizonta...

The efficacy of intermittent high-dose vitamin C therapy was evaluated in seven patients with HTLV-I-associated myelopathy (HAM). All HAM patients responded well to this therapy without serious side effects. Grade of disability score improved at 9.7 (SD 5.8) months after the therapy from 7.1 (3.3) to 3.6 (2.0) (p < 0.01). Serum immunosuppressive acidic protein was elevated before and decreased ...

Human T cell leukemia/lymphoma virus Type 1 and 2 (HTLV-1 and HTLV-2), together with their simian counterparts (STLV-1, STLV-2), belong to the Primate T lymphotropic viruses group (PTLV). The high percentage of homologies between HTLV-1 and STLV-1 strains, led to the demonstration that most HTLV-1 subtypes arose from interspecies transmission between monkeys and humans. STLV-3 viruses belong to...