Simian Foamy Viruses in Central and South America: A New World of Discovery
André F. Santos,
Liliane T. F. Cavalcante,
Cláudia P. Muniz,
William M. Switzer,
Marcelo A. Soares
Affiliations
André F. Santos
Departamento de Genética, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 21941-617, RJ, Brazil
Liliane T. F. Cavalcante
Departamento de Genética, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 21941-617, RJ, Brazil
Cláudia P. Muniz
Departamento de Genética, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 21941-617, RJ, Brazil
William M. Switzer
Laboratory Branch, Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention, National Center for HIV/AIDS, Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
Marcelo A. Soares
Departamento de Genética, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 21941-617, RJ, Brazil
Foamy viruses (FVs) are the only exogenous retrovirus to date known to infect neotropical primates (NPs). In the last decade, an increasing number of strains have been completely or partially sequenced, and molecular evolution analyses have identified an ancient co-speciation with their hosts. In this review, the improvement of diagnostic techniques that allowed the determination of a more accurate prevalence of simian FVs (SFVs) in captive and free-living NPs is discussed. Determination of DNA viral load in American primates indicates that oral tissues are the viral replicative site and that buccal swab collection can be an alternative to diagnose SFV infection in NPs. Finally, the transmission potential of NP SFVs to primate workers in zoos and primate centers of the Americas is examined.
