Evolution of sequences encoding the principal neutralization epitope of human immunodeficiency virus 1 is host dependent, rapid, and continuous

Tom F.W. Wolfs*, Jean Jacques De Jong, Henk Den Van Berg, Jolanda M.G.H. Tijnagel, Willy J.A. Krone, Jaap Goudsmit

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

130 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

The principal neutralization epitope of human immunodeficiency virus 1 is localized in the third variable (V3) domain of the external envelope and has been shown to bind isolate-specific antibodies. Therefore, the extent of variation within the nucleic acid sequence encoding this epitope was studied in DNA directly obtained from peripheral blood mononuclear cells of six children and their plasma donor. This revealed that the quasi-species distribution of sequences obtained after cloning varied from recipient to recipient and that the distance from the donor sequences increased over time. V3 nucleotide evolution rates averaged 9.5 × 10-3 per site per year for silent sites and 11.4 × 10-3 per site per year for nonsilent sites (vs. 9.7 and 9.8 × 10-3 per site per year for a control region 5′ adjacent to the V3 region) and, although individual differences were observed, did not correlate with the serum antigen levels or disease progression. Sequences of both the epitope coding region itself (V3) and the control region upstream diverted more from the donor sequence among children not progressing to AIDS than among children progressing to AIDS. The evolution of V3 sequences is apparently host dependent, rapid, and independent of the level of antigen expression.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)9938-9942
Number of pages5
JournalProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
Volume87
Issue number24
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Jan 1990

Keywords

  • Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome
  • Divergence
  • Envelope glycoprotein 120
  • Quasi-species

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