A Unique Second-Generation Recombinant Form of HIV-1 Identified Among Men Who Have Sex with Men Population in Beijing, China.

In China, CRF01_AE and CRF07_BC are the most circulating strains of HIV-1, more and more second-generation recombinant forms have been isolated around the two strains. The same situation happened in Beijing in recent years. In our study, we have isolated a new second-generation recombinant form of HIV-1 from a male patient who was infected by homosexual behavior. Polygenetic analysis revealed that the sequence includes five CRF01_AE fragments and four CRF07_BC fragments. CRF01_AE is the skeleton of the recombinant which was inserted with four CRF07_BC fragments. The emergency of such second-generation recombinant forms manifests the diversity of the HIV-1 epidemic. Consequently, further investigation of molecular epidemiology is needed to track the genetic evolution of HIV-1.