Genome Sequences of a Novel HIV-1 Circulating Recombinant Form (CRF59_01B) Identified among MSM in China.

Abstract We report here a novel HIV-1 circulating recombinant form (CRF59_01B), isolated from three epidemiologically unlinked men who have sex with men (MSM) in China. CRF59_01B was composed of subtype CRF01_AE and B, with four identical recombinant breakpoints observed in the pol, env genes and between the 3' tat (or rev) and vpu genes. The emergence of CRF59_01B suggests the increasing significance of homosexual transmission in China's HIV epidemic and may indicate an active transmission network of HIV infections among MSM population in China. Further studies of the molecular epidemiology of HIV-1 epidemic among MSM population in China are necessary to gain a fuller understanding of the transmission network and potential public health impact of HIV -1 among MSM population in this region.