HTLV-1, Immune Response and Autoimmunity.

Human T-lymphotropic virus type-1 (HTLV-1) infection is associated with adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma (ATL). Tropical spastic paraparesis/HTLV-1-associated myelopathy (PET/HAM) is involved in the development of autoimmune diseases including Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA), Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE), and Sjögren's Syndrome (SS). The development of HTLV-1-driven autoimmunity is hypothesized to rely on molecular mimicry, because virus-like particles can trigger an inflammatory response.