title: Rare and new V3 loop variants in HIV-1-positive long-term non-progressors from Rwanda.
abstract: We identified uncommon amino acid substitutions in the V3 loop regions of HIV-1 strains infecting patients from Rwanda. Their frequency was greater in long-term non-progressors (LTNP) compared with late-stage patients (P = 0.006), particularly in a sequence region that has crucial interactions with the cell surface, and is highly relevant for the host's immune response. These variants might reflect a viral response to a strong immune pressure, or represent attenuated HIV-1 strains infecting LTNP in Rwanda.
authors.affiliation: Retrovirology Laboratory, CRP-Santé, Luxembourg.
authors.forename: François
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Roman
authors.forename: Etienne
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Karita
authors.forename: Alexia
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Monnet
authors.forename: Christine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lambert
authors.forename: Elodie
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Fontaine
authors.forename: Susan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Allen
authors.forename: François
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Schneider
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Hemmer
authors.forename: Jean-Claude
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Schmit
authors.forename: Vic
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Arendt
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D019943:Amino Acid Substitution; D005260:Female; D015699:HIV Envelope Protein gp120 / Q000235:genetics*; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000821:virology; D020276:HIV Long-Term Survivors; D006679:HIV Seropositivity; D015497:HIV-1 / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010446:Peptide Fragments / Q000235:genetics*; D012432:Rwanda; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA
chemical_list: D015699:HIV Envelope Protein gp120; C059762:HIV envelope protein gp120 (305-321); D010446:Peptide Fragments