Open AccessIndependent Evolution of Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 env V1/V2 and V4/V5 Hypervariable Regions during Chronic Infection
Author(s) -
Patrick R. Harrington,
Julie A. Nelson,
Kathryn M. Kitrinos,
Ronald Swanstrom
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
journal of virology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.617
H-Index - 292
eISSN - 1070-6321
pISSN - 0022-538X
DOI - 10.1128/jvi.02554-06
Subject(s) - biology , heteroduplex , hypervariable region , population , genetics , virology , virus , human immunodeficiency virus (hiv) , dna , genome , gene , demography , sociology
Using DNA heteroduplex tracking assays, we characterized human immunodeficiency virus type 1env V4/V5 genetic populations in multiple blood plasma samples collected over an average of 7 months from 24 chronically infected human subjects. We observed complex and dynamic V4/V5 genetic populations in most subjects. Comparisons of V4/V5 and V1/V2 population changes over the course of the study showed that major shifts in genetic populations frequently occurred in one region but not the other, and these observations were independently confirmed in one subject by single-genome sequencing. These results suggest that the V1/V2 and V4/V5 regions ofenv often evolve independently during chronic infection.