Low oxidative DNA damage in patients with tropical spastic paraparesis by HTLV-1

Tropical spastic paraparesis is a myelopathy caused by HTLV -1 virus,whose pathogenesis is yet not clear, being the most likely hypothesis to be due TAX viral protein activity that increases the production of reactive oxygen species, resulting in transformation, cell immortalization, DNA damage and disease .The aim of this study was to evaluate oxidative DNA damage in patients with tropical spastic paraparesis by HTLV 1 treated at a referral service in Belém, Pará, Brazil. Methods: It was a retrospective study involving adults. The study participants were asymptomatic or with tropical spastic paraparesissimptoms, considering the following inclusion and exclusion criteria. The patients were studied according to the Castro-Costa classification (2006) of which eight were diagnosed,12 probable, 34 asymptomatic and 28 healthy. Results: the average age was 47,9 years, with 30.5% men and 69.5% women. The mean urinary 8 OHdG concentration in the defined patients was 2,5 ng / ml, probable 2,7 ng / ml, asymptomatic 2,6 ng / ml and healthy controls 2,5 ng / ml, showing no significant difference (p value = 0,989) between the groups. Conclusion: This study showed no difference between patients and healthy controls suggesting that oxidative DNA damage is not the most likely mechanism in the pathogenesis of tropical spastic paraparesis.