Human immunodeficiency virus mutations during the first month of infection are preferentially found in known cytotoxic T-lymphocyte epitopes.
The full protein coding region of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) genomes were sequenced using plasma collected from nine African-Americans prior to seroconversion and 7 to 28 days later. HIV mutations emerged in seven of these subjects at a genomewide rate of 2% per year. The location of nonsynonymous (NS) HIV mutations within these subjects was compared to their potential HLA-A and B types restricted CTL epitopes reported in the Los Alamos National Laboratory HIV immunology database. A statistically significant (P < 0.005) number of the early NS mutations (13.5%) were found within previously reported CTL epitopes. A virus sequencing and reported CTL epitopes database analysis therefore support a model where a significant proportion of very early nonsynonymous HIV mutations are selected by CTL.
Bernardin
Flavien
F
Blood Systems Research Institute, San Francisco, CA 94118, USA.
Kong
Denice
D
Peddada
Lorraine
L
Baxter-Lowe
Lee Ann
LA
Delwart
Eric
E
D001741:Black or African American; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D018984:Epitopes, T-Lymphocyte / Q000235:genetics*; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000821:virology*; D015497:HIV-1 / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology; D015234:HLA-A Antigens; D015235:HLA-B Antigens; D006801:Humans; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009154:Mutation; D013602:T-Lymphocytes, Cytotoxic / Q000276:immunology*; D013997:Time Factors
D018984:Epitopes, T-Lymphocyte; D015234:HLA-A Antigens; D015235:HLA-B Antigens