Genetic Heterogeneity of HIV Type 1 in Russia: Identification of H Variants and Relationship with Epidemiological Data

HIV-genetic subtypes were analyzed in 130 subjects from the Russian Federation, by the HMA technique. Six subtypes were identified in heterosexuals, including A, B, C, D, G, and H; however, homosexual men were infected predominantly with the B subtype (33 of 35). The subtype A isolates were found in population of intravenous drug users. HMA successfully identifies 128/130 DNA samples; the phylogenetic analysis of the V1/V5 gp120 encoding region derived from another two samples demonstrated that these isolate belong to subtype H.