ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Med.
Sec. Infectious Diseases: Pathogenesis and Therapy
Volume 12 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fmed.2025.1616406
Investigating STLV-1 Infection in African Green Monkeys: A Model for Understanding HTLV-1 Pathogenesis
Provisionally accepted
Victor Ângelo Folgosi1*
Liliane Carneiro2
Sabri Saeed Sanabani1
Felipe Freitas3
Mayara Santana3Amanda L Silva1Gerlane N Noronha2Ariela S Farias2
Hebert Fabricio Culler1Carlos F Apoliano1
Luciano Rodrigo Lopes4Juliana Pereira1
Luis Alberto Lage1
Igor Brasil-Costa3
Camila Malta Romano1Shirley V Komninakis1
Jorge Casseb1- 1Hospital das Clinicas da FMUSP, SAO PAULO, Brazil
- 2National Center for Primate (CENP), Belém do Pará, PA, Brazil
- 3Evandro Chagas Institute, Ananindeua, Brazil
- 4Federal University of São Paulo, São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
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Simian T-cell leukemia virus type 1 (STLV-1) and human T-lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1) are homologues, with high genetic identity, so STLV-1 infections in nonhuman primates may serve as valuable models for studying HTLV-1 pathogenesis. The aim of this study was to investigate STLV-1 infection in captive green monkeys in Brazil. Blood samples were collected from 52 Chlorocebus aethiops and examined for virus presence, genetic characterization and pathological manifestations. STLV-1 was detected in seven animals, corresponding to a seroprevalence rate of 13.4%. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that the STLV-1 strains found are more closely related to baboon STLV-1 strains and human African HTLV-1 isolates than to other STLV-1 variants. This genetic proximity suggests a shared evolutionary history and sheds light on possible cross-species transmission events. STLV-1 infection in C. aethiops shows remarkable clinical and hematologic parallels to HTLV-1 infection, including the appearance of the characteristic "flower cells" and similar lymphoproliferative disorders.
Keywords: HTLV-1, STLV-1, ATLL, Adult T-cell leukemia-lymphoma, Chlorocebus aethiops
Received: 22 Apr 2025; Accepted: 04 Jun 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Folgosi, Carneiro, Sanabani, Freitas, Santana, Silva, Noronha, Farias, Culler, Apoliano, Lopes, Pereira, Lage, Brasil-Costa, Romano, Komninakis and Casseb. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Victor Ângelo Folgosi, Hospital das Clinicas da FMUSP, SAO PAULO, Brazil
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