Explosive HIV-1 subtype B' epidemics in Asia driven by geographic and risk group founder events

Abstract

We explored the timescale, spatial spread, and risk group population structure of HIV-1 subtype B', the cause of explosive blood-borne HIV-1 epidemics among injecting drug users (IDUs) and former plasma donors (FPDs) in Asia. Sequences from FPDs in China formed a distinct monophyletic cluster within subtype B'. Further analysis revealed that subtype B' was founded by a single lineage of pandemic subtype B around 1985. Subsequently, the FPD cluster appears to have derived from a single subtype B' lineage around 1991, corroborating the hypothesis that FPD outbreaks stemmed from the preceding epidemic among IDUs in Southeast Asia, most likely from the Golden-Triangle region.

Emergence in Japan of an HIV-1 Variant Associated with Transmission among Men Who Have Sex with Men (MSM) in China: First Indication of the International Dissemination of the Chinese MSM Lineage

“…The estimated evolutionary rates were 2.81 (95% HPD, 2.42 to 3.22) ϫ 10 Ϫ3 and 1.81 (1.46 to 2.15) ϫ 10 Ϫ3 substitutions/site/year for CRF01_AE and subtype B, respectively. The results were essentially similar to those previously estimates for CRF01_AE and subtype B (31,36,37).…”

Intercontinental Dispersal of HIV-1 Subtype B Associated with Transmission among Men Who Have Sex with Men in Japan

“…HIV-1 subtype B= (37, 38) was originally identified among injection drug users (IDUs) in Thailand and spread into neighboring Asian countries through drug use networks. This lineage also contributed the founding strain responsible for the HIV outbreaks in central China among FPDs in the early to mid-1990s (33,39). The exposure categories of the 20 subtype B= infections identified in the UKHIVRDB are as follows: heterosexual exposure, n ϭ 9 (45%); MSM or bisexual exposure, n ϭ 4 (20%); unknown exposure, n ϭ 7 (35%).…”

“…Black arrows depict the origin of pandemic subtype B and its plausible global dispersal history (33,36). The estimated tMRCAs (95% HPD) of each subtype B lineage and its ancestor are shown (33,36). For country code definitions, see the legend to Fig.…”

Near Full-Length Genome Identification of a Novel HIV-1 Recombinant Form (CRF01_AE/B′/C) Among Heterosexuals in Jilin, China

“…A potential reason for this would be that the subtype B¢ progenitor of JL.RF01 had diverged significantly from the Thailand subtype B¢ lineage associated with the bloodborne epidemic in Asia. 7 Another potential reason could be the presence of very short regions of nonsubtype B¢ (for instance, the subtype C and CRF01_AE regions) within the subtype B¢ regions as undetected recombinant regions. In addition, the ancestral origin of the subtype C regions (III, VI, and VIII) was more likely from an Indian subtype C lineage, whereas the CRF01_AE regions (I, V, and IX) originated from Thailand CRF01_AE but were not related to the seven distinct clusters of CRF01_AE variants circulating among various high-risk populations and geographic regions in China (Fig.…”