Document 1073
 DOCN  M9471073
 TI    Sequence analysis of a viral gene found within the central nervous
       system of patients with human T-cell lymphotropic virus type
       I-associated disease.
 DT    9409
 AU    Maroushek SR; Univ. of Minnesota
 SO    Diss Abstr Int [B]; 53(10):5067 1993. Unique Identifier : AIDSLINE
       ICDB/94690940
 AB    Human T-cell lymphotropic virus type I (HTLV-I) is a type C retrovirus
       endemic to portions of Japan, the Caribbean, Africa, South America, and
       the United States. Although infection with HTLV-I causes predominantly
       asymptomatic infections, HTLV-I is the etiologic agent of adult I-cell
       leukemia (ATL) and recent studies implicate HTLV-I in the neurologic
       diseases HTLV-I associated myelopathy/tropical spastic paraparesis
       (HAM/TSP) as well. Because of the association of the virus with both a
       neurologic and a leukemic disease and because of precedents in animal
       and human virus systems, this thesis focused on the analysis of sequence
       variations within the env gene of HTLV-I with the hypothesis that there
       would be changes that could be linked to neurologic disease. Viral env
       DNA from the CNS tissues of HAM, TSP, and ATL patients was amplified,
       cloned, and sequenced. Sequence analysis revealed the presence of
       mutations in the env gene of both HAM and TSP, but not ATL-associated
       viruses that encode for proteins that could potentially result in a
       nonfunctional or defective provirus. A model was proposed that could
       explain how the defective proviruses arise, how they spread to and
       within the CNS, and how the defective proviruses may cause
       neuropathologic damage. (Full text available from University Microfilms
       International, Ann Arbor, MI, as Order No. AAD93-06513)
 DE    Central Nervous System/*METABOLISM  Genes, Viral  HTLV-I
       Infections/*GENETICS  Human  *Sequence Analysis  THESIS

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