GENETIC DIVERSITY OF HUMAN-IMMUNODEFICIENCY-VIRUS TYPE-1 STRAINS IN KINSHASA, ZAIRE

The envelope (env) gene of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) was amplified by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) from the peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of 14 HIV-1-infected women from Kinsha sa, Zaire. Amplified DNA was directly sequenced with a primer specific for the HIV-1 env C2 region. The predicted amino acid sequences for t he C2-V3 region for the 14 specimens are presented. The tetrapeptide s equence, GPGQ, located at the crown of the V3 loop, is conserved in al l specimens. The same tetrapeptide sequence is present in the Zairian isolate MAL, but not in other published Zairian isolates (Z6, ELI, Z32 1, JY1, and NDK). Sequence comparison of the env C2-V3 region among th e 14 specimens from Kinshasa revealed a 9-25 % range of nucleotide div ergence, with an average of 16 %. Divergence between the 14 specimens and the Zairian isolates MAL, Z6, ELI, Z321, JY1, and NDK ranged from 13 to 31 %. A range of 18-28 % nucleotide sequence divergence was demo nstrated between the 14 Kinshasa specimens and the North American isol ate MN. These results demonstrate the importance of examining HIV-1 sa mples from diverse geographic origins in the development of effective HIV-1 vaccines.