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There have been no studies related to groups at the highest risk for HIV-1 infection in Korea before 1993. In this study, for the first time, we report the distribution of HIV subtypes in overseas sailors (OSs) and prostitutes who worked in brothels near U.S. military bases in Korea. We retrospectively determined the sequences of nef in 131 patients using reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). These patients composed of 102 OSs, 14 OS spouses, and 15 prostitutes. Phylogenetic analysis was performed using 128 Korean OSs, OS spouses, and prostitutes. The distribution of non-B subtypes (n = 105) was as follows: 39, CRF02_AG; 15, CRF01_AE; 7, A1; 7, A2; 6, D; 2, CRF06_cpx; 3, C; 6, G; 11, untypable; and 1 each for CRF09_cpx, CRF12_BF, CRF50_A1D, A3, AFG, H, F1, F2, and A. Of the 116 OSs and OS spouses, 101 (87%), 11 (9%), and 4 (3%) subjects had non-B, Western B, and Korean subclade B (KSB) HIV-1s, respectively. Among the 15 prostitutes, 10 had Western B (67%), 4 non-B (27%), and 1 KSB (7%) HIV-1s. All 14 couples, each comprising of an OS and his spouse, had the same subtype. KSB (5%) was detected in OSs and prostitutes in 1990 and 1994, respectively. Of the 131 patients analyzed in this study, 105 (80%), 21 (16%), and 5 (4%) were infected with the non-B, Western B, and KSB subtypes of HIV, respectively. In future, these data may provide an important foundation for analysis of HIV-1 subtypes in Korea.

The Korean subclade of subtype B (KSB) is the most prevalent HIV-1 strain found in Korea. To date, only two near full-length HIV-1 sequences from Korean patients have been reported. Here, we analyzed a total of 24 near full-length genomes of HIV-1 strains that were isolated from 17 antiretroviral therapy (ART)-naive patients and four ART-exposed patients. Proviral DNA from peripheral blood mononuclear cells was PCR amplified and directly sequenced. Phylogenetic analyses were used to classify viruses from 19 patients as KSB, from one patient as subtype B, from one patient as subtype D, and three viruses from one patient as CRF02_AG. All KSB viruses demonstrated TAAAA instead of TATAA at the TATA box in the LTR. Of the 19 KSB patients, their sequence identities at the nucleotide level ranged from 89.8% to 97.1% from the lowest env gene to the highest pol gene. Other than the CRF02_AG viruses, no recombination events were noted in any of the 19 KSB patients, which is consistent with our previous studies on the pol, vif, and nef genes. Except for one strain, all of the strains were classified as non-syncytium-inducing strains. This is the first report to describe near full-length KSB.

Ginseng has been used in humans for thousands of years and is known to have multiple biological and immunomodulatory effects. In this study, we investigated whether Korean red ginseng extract would have preventive and antiviral effects on influenza virus infection. Oral administration to mice of red ginseng extract prior to infection significantly increased survival after infection with the 2009 pandemic H1N1 virus. Daily oral treatment of vaccinated mice with red ginseng extract provided enhanced cross-protection against antigenically distinct H1N1 and H3N2 influenza viruses. Naive mice that were infected with virus mixed with red ginseng extract showed significantly enhanced protection, lower levels of lung viral titers and interleukin-6, but higher levels of interferon-γ compared with control mice having virus infections without red ginseng extract, indicating an antiviral effect of ginseng. In addition, ginseng extract exhibited inhibitory effects on the growth of influenza virus in vitro. This study provides evidence that intake of ginseng extract will have beneficial effects on preventing lethal infection with newly emerging influenza viruses.

There was an outbreak of HIV-1 transmission among 20 out of 122 Korean hemophiliacs from 1990. We assessed the genetic relationships among HIV-1 viruses found in three cash-paid plasma donors whose preseroconversion plasma was used to produce Korean-made clotting factor, 20 hemophiliacs infected with HIV-1 in Korea, three hemophiliacs infected with HIV-1 from clotting factor manufactured outside Korea, and 71 local control patients infected with the Korean subclade of HIV-1 subtype B (KSB). Full-length pol gene sequences (2841 bp) of viruses from frozen stored serum, samples obtained 1-3 years after diagnosis, were amplified by RT-PCR and sequenced by direct DNA sequencing. Phylogenetic and signature pattern analyses were used to investigate the relationships among the sequences. Donors O and P were associated with two clusters, of 8 and 12 hemophiliacs, respectively, which were demarcated from the 71 KSB-infected local control patients and donor R. These data confirm that HIV-1 transmission to 20 hemophiliacs occurred through infusion of Korean-made clotting factor.