Identification and Characterization of Positively Selected Mutations in Nef of Four HIV-1 Major Subtypes from Los Alamos National Laboratory

摘要

Background: Human immunodeficiency virus-1 (HIV-1) mutates rapidly to escape host immune pressure. This results in the generation of positively selected mutations (PSM) throughout the viral genome. Escape mutations in Nef, one of the accessory proteins of HIV-1, which plays an important role in viral pathogenicity have previously been identified in several large cohort studies, but the evolution of PSMs overtime in various HIV-1 subtypes remains unknown.