Simian Immunodeficiency Virus seroreactivity in inhabitants from rural Cameroon frequently in contact with non-human primates

Claudia Filippone (1, 2) , Fabienne de Oliveira (3) , Edouard Betsem (1, 4) , Laura Schaeffer (5) , Arnaud Fontanet (5) , Veronique Lemée (3) , Antoine Gessain (1) , Jean-Christophe Plantier (3, 6)

1 EPVO (UMR_3569 / U-Pasteur_3) - Epidémiologie et Physiopathologie des Virus Oncogènes
2 IPM - Unité de Virologie [Antananarivo, Madagascar]
3 CHU Rouen
4 University of Yaoundé [Cameroun]
5 Epidémiologie des Maladies Emergentes - Emerging Diseases Epidemiology
6 GRAM 2.0 - Groupe de Recherche sur l'Adaptation Microbienne

Central African tropical forests are home to several species of non-human primates (NHPs), infected by Simian Immunodeficiency Virus (SIV). It is well-known that HIV-1 epidemic is due to cross-transmission and adaptation of SIV to humans. The main goal of this work was to investigate if a NHP bite is a risk factor for SIV acquisition. A cross-sectional study was performed in rural Cameroon on 246 bitten individuals (mostly by adult NHPs), matched, according to sex, age, and ethnicity (Bantus and Pygmies), with an equal number of not-bitten subjects. Following a serological assay for a wide range of SIVs, we observed a high level of indeterminate seroreactivity (25.8%) in the total population, whereas 68.9% were sero-negative and 5.3% HIV-1 positive. Bites do not appear to be a risk factor for SIV seroreactivity, in contrast to Simian Foamy Virus and Simian T-Lymphotropic Virus type 1 in the same studied population.

Keywords: Bite; Cameroon; Central Africa; Cross-species transmission; HIV; Non-human primate; Pygmies; SIV; Seroreactivity

Domains: Life Sciences [q-bio]; Virology; Infectious diseases; Santé publique et épidémiologie

Claudia Filippone, Fabienne de Oliveira, Edouard Betsem, Laura Schaeffer, Arnaud Fontanet, et al.. Simian Immunodeficiency Virus seroreactivity in inhabitants from rural Cameroon frequently in contact with non-human primates. Virology, 2017, 503, pp.76 - 82. ⟨10.1016/j.virol.2016.12.026⟩. ⟨pasteur-01672853⟩