Infection and Drug Resistance (Apr 2020)

HIV-1 Drug Resistance in ART-Naïve Individuals in Myanmar

  • Ye M,
  • Chen X,
  • Wang Y,
  • Zhou YH,
  • Pang W,
  • Zhang C,
  • Zheng YT

Journal volume & issue
Vol. Volume 13
pp. 1123 – 1132

Abstract

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Mei Ye,1,2 Xin Chen,1,3 Yu Wang,4 Yan-Heng Zhou,5 Wei Pang,1 Chiyu Zhang,6 Yong-Tang Zheng1,4 1Key Laboratory of Animal Models and Human Disease Mechanisms of the Chinese Academy of Sciences/Key Laboratory of Bioactive Peptides of Yunnan Province, KIZ-CUHK Joint Laboratory of Bioresources and Molecular Research in Common Diseases, Center for Biosafety Mega-Science, Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, Yunnan 650223, People’s Republic of China; 2Savaid Medical School, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 101408, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Pathogenic Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Gannan Medical University, Ganzhou 341000, People’s Republic of China; 4KIZ-SU Joint Laboratory of Animal Model and Drug Development, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Soochow University, Suzhou, Jiangsu 215000, People’s Republic of China; 5Shaanxi Engineering and Technological Research Center for Conversation and Utilization of Regional Biological Resources, College of Life Sciences, Yan’an University, Yan’an, Shaanxi 716000, People’s Republic of China; 6Pathogen Discovery and Evolution Unit, Institute Pasteur of Shanghai, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200025, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Yong-Tang ZhengKey Laboratory of Animal Models and Human Disease Mechanisms of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 32 Jiaochang Donglu, Kunming, People’s Republic of ChinaTel/Fax +86 871 65195684Email [email protected] ZhangPathogen Discovery and Evolution Unit, Institute Pasteur of Shanghai, 320 Yueyang Road, Shanghai, People’s Republic of ChinaTel/Fax +86 21 54923051Email [email protected]: Estimating the prevalence and characterizing the transmission of HIV-1 drug resistance in treatment-naïve individuals are very important in the prevention and control of HIV/AIDS. As one of the areas most affected by HIV/AIDS, few data are currently available for HIV-1 drug resistance in antiretroviral therapy (ART)-naïve individuals in Myanmar, which borders Yunnan, China.Methods: HIV-1 pol sequences from ART-naïve HIV-1-infected individuals during 2008 and 2014 in Myanmar were retrieved from our previous studies. HIV-1 transmitted drug resistance (TDR) and susceptibility to antiretroviral drugs were predicted using the Stanford HIVdb program. HIV-1 transmission cluster (TC) was determined by Cluster Picker.Results: A total of 169 partial pol sequences from ART-naïve HIV-1 positive Burmese were analyzed. The prevalence of TDR was 20.1%. CRF01_AE and BC recombinants appeared to have a higher prevalence of TDR than other subtypes. The V179D/T was found to be very common in the China–Myanmar border region and was involved in half of the transmission clusters formed by HIV-1 drug-resistance strains in this region. Comparison showed that drug-resistance mutation profile in Myanmar was very similar to that in Dehong prefecture of Yunnan. By further phylogenetic analysis with all available sequences from the China–Myanmar border region, four HIV-1 drug-resistance-related TCs were identified. Three of them were formed by Burmese long-distance truck drivers and the Burmese staying in Yunnan, and another was formed by Burmese injection drug users staying in Myanmar and Yunnan. These results suggest a potential transmission link of HIV-1 drug resistance between Myanmar and Yunnan.Conclusion: Given the high prevalence of TDR in Myanmar, and the potential risk of cross-border transmission of HIV-1 drug-resistant strains between Myanmar and Yunnan, China, ongoing monitoring of HIV-1 drug resistance in ART-naïve individuals will provide a guideline for clinical antiretroviral treatment and benefit the prevention and control of HIV/AIDS in this border region.Keywords: HIV-1, antiretroviral therapy, transmission cluster, drug-resistance mutations, ART-naïve, Myanmar, Yunnan

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