Comparison of a human T-cell lymphotropic virus type I strain from cerebrospinal fluid of a Jamaican patient with tropical spastic paraparesis with a prototype human T-cell lymphotropic virus type I

The isolation and characterization of a human T-cell lymphotrophic virus type I (HTLV-I) from cerebrospinal fluid of a Jamaican patient with tropical spastic paraparesis is described. The virus isolate is a typical type C retrovirus as seen by electron microscopy and is related to prototype HTLV-I isolated from patients with adult T-cell leukemia but is not identical to this prototype HTLV-I as seen by restriction enzyme mapping.(AU)

Mitochondrial DNA polymorphis in three Antillean island populations of the fruit bat, Artibeus jamaicensis

The Neotropical fruit bat, Artibeus jamaicensis, occurs throughout Latin America and on many islands in the Caribbean. Populations from Jamaica (in the Greater Antilles) to Barbados (in the Lesser Antilles) have been classified as a subspecies (A. J. jamaicensis) separate from that on the Lesser Antillean island of St. Vincent (A. j. schwartz). Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) was isolated from 54 individuals collected on these islands, analyzed by digestion with restriction endonucleases, and the restriction sites were mapped. Three different mtDNA genotypes (16,000 ñ 200 bp) were identified: J-i (16 animals from Jamaica, one from St. Vincent, 15 from Barbados), 1-2 (two animals from Jamaica), and SV -1 (18 animals from St. Vincent, two from Barbdos). The J-1 and J-2 genotypes were estimated to differ from each other by only 0.4 percent, but the SV-1 genotype differ from J-1 and J-2 by 8.1 percent-10.5 percent. The estimated sequence divergence between SV-1 and J-1 unusually large for mammals that are regarded as conspecific. Restriction mapping showed that the differences among the genotypes (presence or abscence of particular restriction site) were located throughout the genome. The presence of the J-1 mtDNA genotype on Jamaica and on St. Vincent and Barbados (1,400 km away) demonstrates that maternal lineages in these bats are not necessarily confined to single islands or limited geographic regions. The presence of the J-1 mt DNA genotype within the A. j. schwartzi population on St. Vincent and the presence of the SV-1 genotype in two specimens of A. j. jamaicensis from Barbados document genetic exchange between subspecific populations on these islands, which are separated by 180 km of open water (AU)

Interaction of the OOO globin gene haplotype and sickle haemoglobin

We have studied the interaction of the OOO/OO gene arrangements with various á globin genotypes (AA, AS, AC, SS and SC). Whereas this interaction has no detectable clinical or haematological effects in subjects with AA, SS or SC genotypes it is associated with a significantly increased level of Hb S or Hb C in heterozygotes for these variants. These findings indicate that the additional O globin gene in the OOO gene arrangement is functional (Summary)