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Abstract Background Understanding co-receptor tropism of HIV-1 strains circulating in India will provide key analytical leverage for assessing the potential usefulness of newer antiretroviral drugs such as chemokine co-receptor antagonists among Indian HIV-infected populations. The objective of this study was to determine using in silico methods, HIV-1 tropism among a large number of Indian isolates both from primary clinical isolates as well as from database-derived sequences. Results R5-tropism was seen in 96.8% of a total of 1045 HIV-1 subtype C Indian sequences. Co-receptor prediction of 15 primary clinical isolates detected two X4-tropic strains using the C-PSSM matrix. R5-tropic HIV-1 subtype C V3 sequences were conserved to a greater extent than X4-tropic strains. X4-tropic strains were obtained from subjects who had a significantly longer time since HIV diagnosis (96.5 months) compared to R5-tropic strains (20.5 months). Conclusions High prevalence of R5 tropism and greater homogeneity of the V3 sequence among HIV-1 subtype C strains in India suggests the potential benefit of CCR5 antagonists as a therapeutic option in India.

This article discusses the DNA barcoding and phylogenetic analysis of the mosquito species Culex gelidus and its global and public health significance. Culex gelidus has been identified as a vector of multiple infectious diseases, including Japanese encephalitis virus. The population density of Cx gelidus increases during the monsoon season and is directly related to the population density of Cx tritaeniorhynchus, another vector of Japanese encephalitis. This species is known to bite humans and other animals, and its geographical distribution is limited to Asia and Australia. The article emphasizes the importance of DNA barcoding for species identification and phylogenetic analysis, as traditional taxonomical identification based on morphological features is becoming more challenging. The authors conducted molecular genetic analysis of Cx gelidus specimens collected from India and compared them with publicly available sequences from India and other countries. The results showed a close relationship between the Indian and Thai sequences. The study highlights the need for further research on the systematics of Cx gelidus and the importance of building a DNA barcode library for this species. The article also mentions the importance of effective vector surveillance to prevent the spread and establishment of vectors in new locations. [Extracted from the article]

To the Editor: Molecular epidemiologic investigations and virologic surveillance contribute notably to the control and prevention of measles (1). Nearly half of measles-related deaths worldwide occur in India, yet virologic [...]

Background: Understanding co-receptor tropism of HIV-1 strains circulating in India will provide key analytical leverage for assessing the potential usefulness of newer antiretroviral drugs such as chemokine co-receptor antagonists among Indian HIV-infected populations. The objective of this study was to determine using in silico methods, HIV-1 tropism among a large number of Indian isolates both from primary clinical isolates as well as from database-derived sequences. Results: R5-tropism was seen in 96.8% of a total of 1045 HIV-1 subtype C Indian sequences. Co-receptor prediction of 15 primary clinical isolates detected two X4-tropic strains using the C-PSSM matrix. R5-tropic HIV-1 subtype C V3 sequences were conserved to a greater extent than X4-tropic strains. X4-tropic strains were obtained from subjects who had a significantly longer time since HIV diagnosis (96.5 months) compared to R5-tropic strains (20.5 months). Conclusions: High prevalence of R5 tropism and greater homogeneity of the V3 sequence among HIV-1 subtype C strains in India suggests the potential benefit of CCR5 antagonists as a therapeutic option in India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]