HIV Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about HIV, including details on human immunodeficiency virus, testing, treatment, prevention, vaccines, aids. | ||||||||
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Molecular epidemiology of HIV-1 infection and full-length genomic analysis of circulating recombinant form 07_BC strains from injection drug users in Taiwan.Lin YT, Lan YC, Chen YJ, Huang YH, Lee CM, Liu TT, Wong WW, Yang JY, Wang CT, Chen YM AIDS Prevention and Research Center, National Yang-Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan. BACKGROUND: Previously, we reported that there was an outbreak of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) circulating recombinant form (CRF) 07_BC among injection drug users (IDUs) in Taiwan in 2004. The objectives of the present study were to conduct a molecular epidemiological analysis and to characterize the full-length genome of the Taiwanese CRF07_BC. METHODS: Three hundred and fifty-eight patients with HIV-1/AIDS from hospitals and 133 HIV-1-infected inmates from detention centers were recruited. DNA sequencing and phylogenetic analysis were conducted to determine subtypes and evolutionary relationships. Recombination breakpoints of 2 full-length CRF07_BC strains were elucidated using a bootscanning method. RESULTS: Of 206 HIV-1-infected patients who received a diagnosis in 2004, 44.7% were infected with subtype B, 53.4% with CRF07_BC, and 1.5% with CRF01_AE. Ninety-eight percent (109/111) of IDUs were infected with CRF07_BC. Deletions of 7-11 amino acids in both p6(gag) and p6(pol) proteins were noted among the Taiwanese CRF07_BC strains. The CRF_07BC strains belonged to 2 phylogenetic clusters, and the first cluster contained only CRF07_BC strains from the southern part of Taiwan. CONCLUSIONS: The Taiwanese CRF07_BC strains had 97% full-length sequence homology with the prototype from mainland China. CRF07_BC was first introduced into the southern region in 2002 and then spread to other regions in Taiwan in 2004. Published 2 April 2007 in J Infect Dis, 195(9): 1283-93.
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