Identification of a Novel HIV Type 1 Recombinant Form (CRF01_AE/CRF07_BC) in Men Who Have Sex with Men in Zhejiang, China.

The prevalence of HIV-1 is increasing rapidly among the population of men who have sex with men (MSM) in China. Here, we report a novel HIV type 1 recombinant form consisting of CRF01_AE and CRF07_BC detected in a male patient through homosexual behavior. A phylogenic analysis revealed that this unique recombinant form (URF) exhibits a complex genomic structure with three CRF07_BC regions inserted into the CRF01_AE backbone. Recently, several second-generation recombinant forms (e.g., CRF01_AE/CRF07_BC) have been identified among MSM in China. The emergence of such URFs highlights the complexity of the HIV-1 epidemic among this population. Therefore, further molecular epidemiological investigation is required to track the genetic evolution of HIV-1 strains.