Molecular Characterization of Biologically Diverse Envelope Variants of Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 Derived from an Individual

The envelope genes of six viruses derived from a single sampling from an individual chronically infected with human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (RJS-4) have been analyzed. Here we present the nucleotide and predicted amino acid sequences of these variants and show a correlation between biological properties and disturbance of the envelope reading frame. Genetic variation among human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) isolates is well established, and viruses analyzed either directly from infected individuals or after propagation in vitro comprise groups of related but genetically and biologically distinct viral subtypes or quasispecies (8, 20, 24, 25). These viruses have differing capacities to replicate in target cells of lymphoid and monocytoid origin or in brain-derived tissues (4, 8, 9, 14, 30), and in some cases replicative preference can be localized to alterations in the envelope protein (5, 15, 17, 26, 27). Here we report a molecular analysis of six infectious provirus constructs containin