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High prevalence of TT virus (TTV) in naive chimpanzees and in hepatitis C virus-infected humans: frequent mixed infections and identification of new TTV genotypes in chimpanzees

Hepatitis Viruses and Molecular Hepatitis Sections, Laboratory of Infectious Diseases, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Building 7, Room 201, 7 Center Dr MSC 0740, Bethesda, MD 20892-0740, USA¹
Department of Internal Medicine, University of Milan, IRCCS Maggiore Hospital, Milan, Italy²

Author for correspondence: Jens Bukh. Fax +1 301 402 0524. e-mail jbukh{at}niaid.nih.gov

A recently discovered DNA virus, TT virus (TTV), is prevalent in humans. In the present study, the genetic heterogeneity of TTV was evaluated in hepatitis C virus (HCV)-infected patients and in chimpanzees. TTV DNA was detected by PCR in serum samples from all ten HCV-infected patients studied; at least five major TTV genotypes, all previously identified in humans, were recovered. Eight patients were infected with multiple variants of TTV. TTV DNA was detected by PCR in serum samples from 11 (65%) of 17 naive chimpanzees bred in captivity; a persistent infection was present in three of six animals. At least five chimpanzees were infected with more than one TTV variant. Detection of TTV DNA in chimpanzee faecal samples suggests the possibility of faecal–oral transmission. Phylogenetic analysis of ORF1 sequences amplified from chimpanzees identified three major genotypes which had not previously been recognized in humans.

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