Studies of Genetic Variation in the Aids Virus: Relevance to Disease Pathogenesis, Anti-viral Therapy, and Vaccine Development
Abstract
Genotypic variation among independent isolates of Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 (HIV-1) is a widely recognized property of the virus. The molecular characteristics and biological consequences of HIV-1 variation in vivo, however, are only beginning to be understood and this information is essential for elucidation of disease pathogenesis and vaccine development. In the past year, we have examined the genesis of HIV-1 molecular variation in persistently infected individuals by preparing and analyzing recombinant HIV-1 lambda phage libraries from three virus isolates. Twenty-seven, 17, and 18 full-length HIV-1 clones were identified, mapped with 11 restriction endonucleases, and found to represent 17, 10, and 13 distinguishable but highly related viral genotypes, respectively. Recombinant viral clones from two HIV-1 isolates obtained from the same individual 16 months apart showed clear patterns of genotypic relatedness, yet progressive change. Similar changes in the HIV-1 genome did not occur in vitro during virus isolation and amplification. The results indicate that HIV-1 variation in vivo is rapid, that a remarkably large number of related but distinguishable genotypic variants evolve in parallel and coexist during chronic infection, and that isolates of HIV-1, unless molecularly or biologically cloned, generally consist of complex mixtures of genotypically-distinct viruses. Keywords: RA 1; AIDS; HTLV-III; Virology; HIV; Restriction maps; Gene mapping.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Mar 15, 1988
- Accession Number
- ADA217226
Entities
People
- George M. Shaw
Organizations
- University of Alabama