The Identification Of A Novel Hiv-1 Second-Generation Recombinant Form (Crf01_ae/Crf07_bc) Among Men Who Have Sex With Men In Jiangsu, China

Background: CRF01_AE and CRF07_BC are the two major HIV-1 virus strains circulating in China. The proportion of dominant subtypes (CRF01_AE and CRF07_BC) among MSM in Jiangsu province was over 80%. A large number of URFs have been found in China in recent years.Objective: This study aimed to report on novel HIV-1 recombinants.Methods: We constructed Phylogenetic trees using the maximum likelihood (ML) method with 1000 bootstrap replicates in IQ-TREE 1.6.8 software and determined recombination breakpoints using SimPlot 3.5.1.Results: We identified a novel, second-generation HIV-1 recombinant (JS020202) between CRF01_AE and CRF07_BC. The analysis of near full-length genome (NFLG) showed there were at least 8 breakpoints in the virus, which differed from any previously identified CRF and URF around the world.Conclusion: Novel diverse CRF01_AE/07_BC suggested the complexity trends of HIV-1 genetics. The emergency situation of diverse recombinant strains should be monitored continuously.