Scientists discover first new HIV strain in 19 years

The strain was identified using next generation genome sequencing and has been discovered in only three people so far.

Representative image | Flickr

New Delhi: Scientists at the US-based Abbot laboratories have identified a new subtype of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), called HIV-1 Group M, subtype L. This is the first Group M HIV subtype to be discovered in 19 years.

Group M is the most common type of HIV, and is responsible for the global pandemic, which can be traced back to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in Sub-Saharan Africa. Since the beginning of the pandemic, 75 million people have been infected with HIV and 37.9 million people today are living with the virus.

The discovery was published in the Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes (JAIDS) Wednesday and the scientists used genome sequencing to identify this new strain. The study also showed how this sequencing method can help researchers identify virus mutation.

“In an increasingly connected world, we can no longer think of viruses being contained to one location,” said Carole McArthur, one of the study authors and a professor at the University of Missouri.

“This discovery reminds us that to end the HIV pandemic, we must continue to outthink this continuously changing virus and use the latest advancements in technology and resources to monitor its evolution,” she added.

Genome sequencing tech helped identify strain

This discovery marks the first time a new subtype of the ‘Group M’ HIV virus has been identified since guidelines for classifying new HIV strains were established in 2000.

Three cases must be independently discovered to determine whether an unusual virus is in fact a new HIV subtype and only three individual cases with this subtype have been identified so far. The first two samples of this subtype were discovered in Congo in the 1980s and the 1990s. The third was collected in 2001.

It was difficult to sequence the strains at the time because of technological limitations. Current genome sequencing technology allows researchers to build an entire genome at a faster rate and at lower costs.

“Identifying new viruses such as this one is like searching for a needle in a haystack,” said Mary Rodgers, principal scientist of the study and head of the Global Viral Surveillance Program at Abbott.

“By advancing our techniques and using next generation sequencing technology, we are pulling the needle out with a magnet,” she added.