Identification of Mutations in Proviral Long Terminal Repeats of HIV Type 1-Infected Subjects Naive to Drug Therapy

Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) proviral DNA sequences in the 5' long terminal repeat (LTR) were examined among 28 drug-naive individuals. Twenty-four subjects had highly conserved LTR sequences, however, more significant changes were observed in the remaining four LTR sequences. These included a 9-bp deletion preceding the NF kappa B elements and a duplication of the RBF-2 motif. A higher overall frequency of mutations within the LTR occurred within NFAT-1 and Sp-1 sequences. Importantly, a novel 16-bp deletion was found in the distal NFAT-1 site.