Fig. 4

Correlation analysis between plasma anti-HBZ antibody levels and HTLV-1 mRNA levels or proviral load in HTLV-1-infected individuals. a HTLV-1 HBZ mRNA levels were significantly correlated with plasma anti-HBZ antibody levels in ACs (p = 0.0093, r = 0.477), but not in HAM/TSP patients (p = 0.974, r = −0.003) or ATL patients (p = 0.141, r = −0.234) by Spearman’s rank correlation analysis. b HTLV-1 HBZ mRNA levels were not significantly correlated with HTLV-1 PVL in ACs (p = 0.964, r = 0.0068), HAM/TSP patients (p = 0.152, r = 0.132), and ATL patients (p = 0.953, r = 0.0095). Correlations were examined by Spearman’s rank correlation analysis. The dotted line represents the cut-off, i.e. the mean OD plus twice the standard deviation of the 17 NC plasma samples