Molecular Genotyping of HIV-1 Strains from Newly Infected Men Who Have Sex with Men in Harbin, China.

In this study, blood samples from newly HIV-1 infected men who have sex with men (MSM) were collected, and HIV-1 genotypes were identified based on gag p17-p24 and nef gene regions. We found that participants aged from 20 to 40 years old were the major infection group in Harbin. CRF01_AE was the predominant genotype, contributing to 84.7% of HIV-1 infections, followed by subtype B (4.7%), CRF07_BC (3.5%), and subtype B' (Thai B, 1.2%). Moreover, five unique recombinant forms (5.9%) were also identified, including genotypes 01B, 01C, and 01/02. The recombinant CRF01_AE/CRF02_AG was first reported in China. These results suggested that current HIV-1 genotype epidemic among MSM in Harbin is more complicated and that intersubtype recombinants have emerged. Therefore, timely regional epidemiological surveillance of HIV-1 genotype and development of prevention measures for new HIV-1 infections among MSM are quite important.