Spatial and Temporal Dynamics of Hepatitis B Virus D Genotype in Europe and the Mediterranean Basin

Hepatitis B virus genotype D can be found in many parts of the world and is the most prevalent strain in south-eastern Europe, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East, and the Indian sub-continent. The epidemiological history of the D genotype and its subgenotypes is still obscure because of the scarcity of appropriate studies. We retrieved from public databases a total of 312 gene P sequences of HBV genotype D isolated in various countries throughout the world, and reconstructed the spatio-temporal evolutionary dynamics of the HBV-D epidemic using a Bayesian framework

Differential coreceptor expression allows for independent evolution of non–syncytium-inducing and syncytium-inducing HIV-1

We demonstrated previously that CD45RA(+) CD4(+) T cells are infected primarily by syncytium-inducing (SI) HIV-1 variants, whereas CD45RO(+) CD4(+) T cells harbor both non-SI (NSI) and SI HIV-1 variants. Here, we studied evolution of tropism for CD45RA(+) and CD45RO(+) CD4(+) cells, coreceptor usage, and molecular phylogeny of coexisting NSI and SI HIV-1 clones that were isolated from four patients in the period spanning SI conversion. NSI variants were CCR5-restricted and could be isolated throughout infection from CD45RO(+) CD4(+) cells. SI variants seemed to evolve in CD45RO(+) CD4(+) cells, but, in time, SI HIV-1 infection of CD45RA(+) CD4(+) cells equaled infection of CD45RO(+) CD4(+) cells. In parallel with this shift, SI HIV-1 variants first used both coreceptors CCR5 and CXCR4, but eventually lost the ability to use CCR5. Phylogenetically, NSI and SI HIV-1 populations diverged over time. We observed a differential expression of HIV-1 coreceptors within CD45RA(+) and CD45RO(+) cells, which allowed us to isolate virus from purified CCR5(+) CXCR4(–) and CCR5(–) CXCR4(+) CD4(+) cells. The CCR5(+) subset was exclusively infected by CCR5-dependent HIV-1 clones, whereas SI clones were preferentially isolated from the CXCR4(+) subset. The differential expression of HIV-1 coreceptors provides distinct cellular niches for NSI and SI HIV-1, contributing to their coexistence and independent evolutionary pathways