Characterization of a New HIV-1 CRF01_AE/CRF07_BC Recombinant Virus in Guangxi, China

Currently, more and more kinds of circulating recombinant forms (CRFs) and unique recombinant forms (URFs) were identified in China. A novel second-generation CCR5-tropic HIV-1 recombinant virus (GX2016EU09) was identified here, which was isolated from a HIV-1-infected man who had sex with men (MSM) in Guangxi, China. Phylogenetic analysis of near full-length genome (NFLG) showed that the novel HIV-1 recombinant GX2016EU09 clustered with CRF01_AE reference sequences, but set up a distinct branch. Recombinant analysis showed that the NFLG of GX2016EU09 composed of CRF01_AE (as the backbone) and CRF07_BC, with nine recombination break points observed in the gag, pol, vif, vpr, tat, rev, vpu, env, and nef regions. To our knowledge, this HIV-1 URF differs from previously documented CRF01_AE/CRF07_BC forms. The emergence of a novel CRF01_AE/CRF07_BC recombinant strain indicates the increasing complexity of the HIV-1 epidemic among the MSM group in Guangxi, China.