title: HIV Type 1 Subtype A1 Dominates in Armenia.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  There is scarce information about the molecular epidemiology of HIV-infection in Armenia (former USSR). The objective of this work was to estimate the distribution of HIV-1 subtypes in this country and get any information about HIV drug resistance in naÏve patients.
  
  
  METHODS
  A joint study involving 78 patients was carried out in Yerevan, Armenia and Moscow, Russia in 2009-2013. The cohort studies included mostly IDUs (28.2%) and heterosexuals (69.2%).
  
  
  RESULTS
  The phylogenetic analyses based on population sequencing of partial pol gene found subtype A1 being the most prevalent (92.3%), followed by subtype B (3.9%). The HIV-1 tropism inferred from env V3-loop sequences was determined in 27 samples, among them R5-tropic viruses were found in 13 (48.1%) patients and X4- variants--in 14 (51.9%) patients. The prevalence of drug resistance in naïve patients was low (1.5%) with the only one mutation K219Q found.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The composition and distribution of HIV-1 genetic variants in Armenia are evidently influenced by the Russian and other FSU countries epidemic, due to the significant volume of Armenian migrant/re-emigrant flows. Continued surveillance of HIV-1 circulating subtypes and drug resistance in Armenia is important for the proper management of HIV infection in this country.
authors.forename: Vita
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Laga
authors.forename: Alexander
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Vasilyev
authors.forename: Ilya
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Lapovok
authors.forename: Samvel
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Grigoryan
authors.forename: Arshak
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Papoyan
authors.forename: Nataliya
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Glushchenko
authors.forename: Elena
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Kazennova
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of T-Lymphotropic Viruses, Ivanovsky Institute of Virology, Gamaleya 16, 123098 Moscow, Russia. mrbobkova@mail.ru.
authors.forename: Marina
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bobkova
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001136:Armenia / Q000453:epidemiology; D015331:Cohort Studies; D024882:Drug Resistance, Viral; D005260:Female; D005838:Genotype; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000821:virology*; D015497:HIV-1 / Q000145:classification* / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D020010:Heterosexuality; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D017720:Molecular Epidemiology; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009031:Moscow / Q000453:epidemiology; D020125:Mutation, Missense; D010802:Phylogeny; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D017385:Sequence Homology; D015819:Substance Abuse, Intravenous / Q000150:complications; D054302:pol Gene Products, Human Immunodeficiency Virus
chemical_list: D054302:pol Gene Products, Human Immunodeficiency Virus