GENETIC-CHARACTERIZATION OF VIRAL QUASI-SPECIES IN BLOOD AND CERVICALSECRETIONS OF HIV-1-INFECTED AND HIV-2-INFECTED WOMEN

We evaluated cervical samples from 11 HIV-1- and 25 HIV-2-infected ind ividuals, The rate of viral shedding was 36.4% for HIV-1 and 16% for H IV-2, after repeat PCRs, We sequenced multiple clones of the C2-C3 env region from cervical secretions rind PBMC samples from three HIV-2-in fected individuals, and the C2-V3 env region from four HIV-1-infected individuals. In most cases, phylogenetic analysis showed that the vira l sequences from blood and genital secretions were intermingled and su bclusters did not segregate according to sample site, In rare cases, h owever, tissue-specific sequences were observed, suggesting a complex relationship between quasispecies in the two sites where preferential transmission of HIV variants may be due to multiple factors.