OBJECTIVETo study the relationship between ultra-performance liquid chromatography (UPLC) fingerprints of Rheum species and their anti-HIV 1 activities.

METHODTwenty two samples of 16 species belonging to genus Rheum from various sources were collected and analyzed in this study. Firstly they were assayed for the HIV-1 reverse transcriptase (RT) associated ribonuclease H (RNase H) activity. Secondly the fingerprints were established by an optimized UPLC method. Sample was analyzed by UPLC-TOF-MS/MS to identify major peaks. The possible relationship between UPLC fingerprints and anti-HIV 1 activities of Rheum species were deduced by mathematical statistics method.

RESULTSamples of R. austral, R. austral, R. hotaoense exhibited good anti-HIV 1 activities with IC50 < or = 0.2 mg x L(-1). The correlation of anti-HIV 1 activities and fingerprints showed that three compounds were the main bioactive components, and their retention times were 4.74, 7.99, 21.18 min, respectively.

CONCLUSIONCompounds in Rheum species with possible anti-HIV 1 activities were deduced by spectrum-effect relationship study. This study supported for study of medicinal plants in Rheum.

Anti-HIV Agents ; chemistry ; pharmacology ; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; chemistry ; pharmacology ; HIV Reverse Transcriptase ; metabolism ; HIV-1 ; drug effects ; enzymology ; Inhibitory Concentration 50 ; Rheum ; chemistry ; Ribonuclease H, Human Immunodeficiency Virus ; metabolism ; Structure-Activity Relationship

No abstract available.
Dideoxynucleosides ; Anti-HIV Agents ; Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors

The efficacy and safety of a single tablet regimen (STR) of elvitegravir/cobicistat/emtricitabine/tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (E/C/F/TDF) were analyzed in Phase 3 clinical trials in antiretroviral therapy (ART)-naïve and ART-experienced Asian subjects infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-1. Studies GS-US-236-102 and GS-US-236-103 were randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, 144-week studies conducted in ART-naïve subjects, comparing E/C/F/TDF versus efavirenz (EFV)/F/TDF or ritonavir-boosted atazanavir (ATV+RTV) plus emtricitabine/tenofovir DF (F/TDF), respectively. Studies GS-US-236-115 and GS-US-236-121 were randomized, open-label, 96-week long conducted in ART-experienced subjects, who switched to E/C/F/TDF from ritonavir-boosted protease inhibitors (PI+RTV)+F/TDF, or non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NNRTI)+F/TDF regimens. The E/C/F/TDF appeared to have sustained efficacy and safety and was well tolerated in the small number of ART-naïve and ART-experienced Asian subjects.
Asian Continental Ancestry Group* ; Atazanavir Sulfate ; HIV* ; HIV-1* ; Humans ; Humans* ; Protease Inhibitors ; Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors

Both reverse transcriptase (RT) and integrase (IN) play crucial roles in the life cycle of HIV-1, which are also key targets in the area of anti-HIV drug research. Reverse transcriptase inhibitors are involved in the most employed drugs used to treat AIDS patients and HIV-infected people, while one of the integrase inhibitors has already been approved by US FDA to appear on the market. Great achievement has been made in the research on both, separately. Recently, much more attention of medicinal chemistry researchers has been attracted to the strategies of multi-target drugs. Compounds with excellent potency against both HIV RT and IN, evidently defined as dual inhibitors targeting both enzymes, have been obtained through considerable significant exploration, which can be classified into two categories according to different strategies. Combinatorial chemistry approach together with high throughput screening methods and multi-target-based virtual screening strategy have been useful tools for identifying selective anti-HIV compounds for long times; Rational drug design based on pharmacophore combination has also led to remarkable results. In this paper, latest progress of both categories in the discovery and structural modification will be covered, with a view to contribute to the career of anti-HIV research.
Drug Design ; HIV Integrase Inhibitors ; chemistry ; pharmacology ; HIV Reverse Transcriptase ; antagonists & inhibitors ; HIV-1 ; drug effects ; Humans ; Molecular Structure ; Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors ; chemistry ; pharmacology ; Structure-Activity Relationship

Nonnucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NNRTIs) play an important roles in the prevention and treatment of AIDS. NNRTIs can specifically target at HIV reverse transcriptase (RT) and have the advantages of high potency and low toxicity, which make them a research focus for a long time. In the guidance of structural optimization strategies (bioisosterism, molecular hybridization and scaffold hopping) in medicinal chemistry, structural modification to lead compounds can be carried out to design new compounds with different levels, which will improve the efficiency of drug discovery and decrease the cost of drug development. It is an effective way to find new NNRTIs. In this review, we will expatiate on the application of different levels of structural optimization strategies in the NNRTIs structural modification with concrete examples.
Anti-HIV Agents ; chemical synthesis ; chemistry ; Drug Design ; HIV Reverse Transcriptase ; antagonists & inhibitors ; chemistry ; Molecular Structure ; Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors ; chemical synthesis ; chemistry

OBJECTIVETo establish the single genome amplification (SGA) method and analyze the quasispecies in HIV-infected patients.

METHODSAll 6 sample RNA acquired in 2010 in Shenzhen and genetic sequenced as overlap peaks were extracted and diluted to a single copy, nest-PCR after one step RT-PCR was employed to amplify HIV-1 genome, and then PCR products was purified and sequenced. Mega 4.02 software was used to analyze the genetic distance among HIV-1 quasispecies, and phylogenetic tree was constructed.

RESULTSOur data showed that viral sequences derived from different patients were grouped into different clusters. Subcluster was also observed in several clusters, indicating these existed competition and preferential replication of certain viral strains. The genetic distance within one cluster of 6 samples were between 0.008 and 0.06, it was likely to associate with the duration since infection and viral load.

CONCLUSIONSGA is a useful approach to gain information on quasispecies, the genetic distance within one cluster may help to determine the infection time and immune escaping. The analysis of related affecting factors need more samples.

Base Sequence ; Genome, Viral ; HIV Infections ; HIV-1 ; Humans ; Phylogeny ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Viral Load

OBJECTIVETo investigate the drug resistance of HIV patients to the HIV-1 CRF01_AE and CRF07_BC strains in Sichuan province during 2010 to 2013.

METHODS1.5 ml of plasma were collected from AIDS patients who had been receiving anti-retroviral treatment for over 6 months but still had a HIV-1 virus load of over 1 000 copies/ml from January 1, 2010 to December 31, 2013 in Sichuan province. Genetic analysis of the HIV-1 pol gene was performed using self-established method, and patients with a positive drug-resistant HIV-1 pol gene mutation were included. HIV-1 poly gene was successfully sequenced for a total of 1 213 patients. Drug resistance of different HIV-1 strains was compared with χ2 test or Fisher exact test.

RESULTS558 cases (46.0%) of the 1 213 successfully sequenced patients were infected by HIV-1-strains with drug-resistant mutations, including 327 cases (58.6%) infected by CRF01_AE strain, 126 (22.6%) by CRF07_BC strain, 46 (8.2%) by CRF08_BC strain, 33 (5.9%) by B strain, 4 (0.7%) by C strain, 1 (0.2%) by CRF02_AG strain, and 21 (3.8%) by unidentified strains. Drug-resistant mutation analysis revealed that L33, F116, L74, Q151, and T69 resistance mutations occurred only in the CRF01_AE strain, while A71, K43, and Q58 resistance mutations occurred only in the CRF07_BC strain; in nuclear nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs) and non nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NNRTIs), CRF01_AE subtype strains showed highly resistant rate were higher than CRF07_BC, CRF08_BC and B subtype strains, with the differences were statistically significant (P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONThe drug-resistant HIV-1 strains in Sichuan mainly included the CRF01_AE and CRF07_BC strains, which had different resistance mutations.

Base Sequence ; Drug Resistance, Viral ; Genes, pol ; HIV Infections ; HIV-1 ; Humans ; Mutation ; Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors ; Viral Load

For 16 years after the finding of HIV as an agent of AIDS in 1981, HIV therapeutic drugs of reverse transcriptase inhibitors (AZT, ddI, ddC, d4T) and protease inhibitors have been developed. Recent studies also were focused on a combination therapy by using HIV therapeutic drugs or natural compounds. Korean red ginseng (KRG) of natural compounds has been well known as a good reinforcement agent in Asia. The percentage of CD3+CD4+ T cell in nine HIV-infected patients without KRG treatment averaged 17.8% on baseline and decreased 15.8% after 6 months, whereas the percentage of the cell in fifteen HIV-infected patients with KRG treatment averaged 15.3% on baseline and increased up to 18.9% after the same period. The average percentage of CD3+CD8+ T cell of KRG-nontreated and KRG-treated HIV patients increased after 6 months 47.8% to 50.7% and 44.7% to 51.4%, respectively; and the average percentage of B and NK cell in the KRG-nontreated and KRG-treated HIV patients decreased 9.4% to 7.9% and 13.0% to 9.7%, 8.9% to 8.5% and 16.2% to 11.6%, respectively, KRG, therefore, didn't have any effects on the CD3+CD8+ T cell, B cell, and NK cell. However, it seems that KRG has a potential activity for stimulating the
Asia ; HIV ; Humans ; Killer Cells, Natural ; Lymphocyte Subsets* ; Lymphocytes* ; Panax* ; Protease Inhibitors ; Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors

BACKGROUNDAlthough it was widely accepted that full-length HIV genome sequences is important in studying virus genetic evolution and variation as well as developing vaccine candidate, to directly sequencing HIV-1 genome of virion RNA remains as a challenge worldwide. Up to date, no published genomic sequences from virion RNA are available for Chinese prevalent HIV-1 strains due to the absence of specialized protocol and appropriate lab equipments. In this study we developed a straightforward approach for amplifying and sequencing HIV virion RNA from plasma by modifying published protocols and further confirmed it is suitable to process Chinese samples.

METHODSThe methods for viral RNA extraction and gene amplification was modified and optimized as could be widely used in most Chinese labs. Gene alignment of Chinese HIV-1 strains was employed for designing specialized primer sets for Thai-B and BC recombinant strains. Based on comprehensively consideration of high variable gene region and recombinant breakpoints in BC recombinant strains, a three-amplicon strategy (including 4.3-kb gag-pol, 2.9-kb pol-env and 2.7-kb env-nef) was developed. In addition, one amplicon (9 kb near full-length genome) was also used in 32 samples with varied viral loads. All amplicons were directly sequenced by DNA automated sequencer.

RESULTSTwenty-five percent (8/32) amplification efficiency was achieved by the one-amplicon strategy and 65.6% (21/32) by three-amplicon strategy. For one amplicon strategy, none of complete near full-length genome sequences was obtained by DNA sequencing. For three-amplicon strategy, 75% sequences were achieved in DNA sequencing. Amplification efficiency but not sequencing efficiency was closely associated with viral loads.

CONCLUSIONThree-amplicon strategy covering all encoding regions of HIV-1 is suitable for Thai-B and BC recombinant strains and could be potentially employed in less-well equipped Chinese labs.

Genome, Viral ; genetics ; HIV-1 ; genetics ; RNA, Viral ; genetics ; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Virion ; genetics

OBJECTIVETo establish the reverse transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification (RT-LAMP) methods for on-site HIV-1 detection.

METHODSAs for the real-time fluorescent RT-LAMP, we firstly tested the specificity and sensitivity, then explored its quantitative determination, and finally applied the method to the detection of 35 HIV-1 positive samples. For colorimetric judgment, after choosing different ameliorates to modify Hydroxynaphthol blue (HNB), we tested their real effects on coloration, and then picked out the modified dyes with obvious color change to test the sensitivity and the detection of the 35 HIV-1-positive samples.

RESULTSThe real-time fluorescent RT-LAMP showed great specificity of HIV-1, and the sensitivity to detect HIV-1 RNA was between 10 and 100 copies per reaction. On testing 35 HIV-1-positive samples, the method could reach 100 percent detection rate. However, for the quantitative determination, the quantitative relation was not observed regarding the HIV-1 RNA of below 10(3) copies per reaction. Three modified HNB dyes with clear color variation between the reaction tubes of the negative and the positive were got in the study, and their sensitivities equaled to the level of agarose gel electrophoresis. Similarly, 100% (35/35) detection rate was reached when the colorimetric RT-LAMP with the modified dyes was applied to detect 35 HIV-1-positive samples.

CONCLUSIONThe established real-time fluorescence method and the modified color judgment of RT-LAMP could be helpful for truly achieving rapid, accurate, and sensitive on-site detection of HIV-1.

HIV-1 ; genetics ; isolation & purification ; Nucleic Acid Amplification Techniques ; methods ; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction