BACKGROUND: The female lower genital tract is a gateway for pathogens entering the host through the mucous membrane. One of the prevalent human viruses is Torque teno virus (TTV). The major reported routes of TTV transmission are fecal-oral and parenteral. Furthermore, other modes of transmission, e.g. sexual contact, are suggested. To investigate the sexual route of TTV transmission, cervical smears of healthy women and those with cervical lesions were screened for the presence of TTV DNA. METHODS: TTV DNA was studied in cervical smears of 95 patients with cervical lesions and 55 healthy women. Paired serum samples were available from 55 and 42 women, respectively. All healthy women had normal cytology while 44 patients had histologically confirmed low-grade lesion (LGL) and 51 high-grade lesion (HGL). TTV DNA was detected with primers specific for the non-coding region. In 40 paired cervical smears and serum samples, the phylogenetic group of TTV isolates was determined. The presence of HPV DNA in cervical smears was detected by means of PCR with MY09/11 primers. RESULTS: The prevalence of TTV DNA in cervical smears of healthy women was 52.7% and was comparable with that in paired serum samples (50%). Symptomatic women had significantly higher prevalence of TTV DNA in cervical smears (74.7%) than healthy controls. The TTV DNA prevalence in patient serum samples was 51%. The phylogenetic groups of TTV serum isolates were concordant with those of TTV from cervical smears of the same subjects. In cervical smears, a wider variety of TTV isolates was found. The viral loads in cervical smears were 10 to 1000 times as high as in sera. The HPV-positive study subjects had significantly higher TTV DNA prevalence than HPV negatives. The prevalence of TTV was not associated with disease severity. CONCLUSION: High prevalence of TTV in cervical smears suggests that sexual transmission is another mode of expansion of TTV infection among the population. The higher viral load in cervical smears than in the respective serum samples might indicate active TTV replication in the female genital tract. Nevertheless, cooperation between TTV and HPV needs to be further investigated.

• MeSH
• DNA virů krev   izolace a purifikace   MeSH
• dospělí MeSH
• fylogeneze MeSH
• genotyp MeSH
• infekce DNA virem komplikace   epidemiologie   přenos   virologie   MeSH
• infekce papilomavirem komplikace   epidemiologie   přenos   virologie   MeSH
• lidé středního věku MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• mladiství MeSH
• mladý dospělý MeSH
• Papillomaviridae genetika   izolace a purifikace   MeSH
• prevalence MeSH
• prospektivní studie MeSH
• senioři MeSH
• sexuálně přenosné nemoci virové komplikace   epidemiologie   přenos   virologie   MeSH
• studie případů a kontrol MeSH
• Torque teno virus genetika   izolace a purifikace   MeSH
• vaginální stěr MeSH
• virová nálož MeSH
• Check Tag
• dospělí MeSH
• lidé středního věku MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• mladiství MeSH
• mladý dospělý MeSH
• senioři MeSH
• ženské pohlaví MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• práce podpořená grantem MeSH
• Názvy látek
• DNA virů MeSH

BACKGROUND: TT virus is prevalent worldwide, but its prevalence and genotype distribution in Central and East-Europe has not been determined. The high prevalence of TTV in multiply-transfused patients points to the importance of a parenteral mode of transmission, but since more than half of the general population is infected other possible routes of transmission must be considered. METHODS: In our study, we investigated the epidemiology, transmission and phylogeny of TTV in the Czech Republic. The following groups were selected: a control group of 196 blood donors, 20 patients with hemophilia, 49 intravenous drug users, 100 sex workers, 50 penitentiary prisoners, 208 healthy children aged 1 to 14 years, 54 cord blood samples, 52 patients with non-A-E hepatitis, 74 patients with hepatitis C, and 51 blood donors with increased ALT levels. Primers specific for the non-coding region were used. The genotype distribution was studied in 70 TTV-positive samples. RESULTS: The prevalence rate of TTV among the Czech population was 52.6%. We have shown that TTV is not transmitted prenatally. Children were infected after birth with two peaks: one at the age of two years and the other after the beginning of primary school. Adults have shown a further increase in the TTV prevalence with age. The highest TTV prevalence was found in the group of patients who had received multiple blood transfusions. The TTV prevalence rate in subjects at an increased risk of sexual transmission was not significantly higher than in the general population. Genotypes G2 and G1 were most prevalent among the Czech population, followed by G8 and G3. The subjects positive for markers of HBV and/or HCV infection tested significantly more often TTV DNA positive, which is suggestive of a common route of transmission of these three infections. CONCLUSIONS: This study on TTV prevalence, mode of transmission and age-specific prevalence is the most extensive study performed in Central and Eastern Europe. It showed insights into the epidemiology of TTV infection, but failed to associate TTV infection with clinical manifestations.

• MeSH
• dárci krve statistika a číselné údaje   MeSH
• dítě MeSH
• DNA virů krev   izolace a purifikace   MeSH
• dospělí MeSH
• fylogeneze MeSH
• genotyp MeSH
• hemofilie A komplikace   MeSH
• infekce DNA virem epidemiologie   přenos   virologie   MeSH
• intravenózní abúzus drog komplikace   MeSH
• kojenec MeSH
• lidé středního věku MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• mladiství MeSH
• polymerázová řetězová reakce MeSH
• předškolní dítě MeSH
• prevalence MeSH
• senioři MeSH
• sexuálně přenosné nemoci virové epidemiologie   přenos   virologie   MeSH
• studie případů a kontrol MeSH
• Torque teno virus * klasifikace   genetika   MeSH
• věkové rozložení MeSH
• vězni statistika a číselné údaje   MeSH
• Check Tag
• dítě MeSH
• dospělí MeSH
• kojenec MeSH
• lidé středního věku MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• mladiství MeSH
• mužské pohlaví MeSH
• předškolní dítě MeSH
• senioři MeSH
• ženské pohlaví MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• práce podpořená grantem MeSH
• Geografické názvy
• Česká republika epidemiologie   MeSH
• Názvy látek
• DNA virů MeSH