Origin of the HIV-1 group O epidemic in western lowland gorillas

• DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1502022112
• Publication Date: 2015-03-03T03:13:24Z
• Authors: Mirela D’arc; Ahidjo Ayouba; Amandine Esteban; Gerald H. Learn; Vanina Boué; Florian Liegeois; Lucie Etienne; Nikki Tagg; Fabian H. Leendertz; Christophe Boesch; Nadège F. Madinda; Martha M. Robbins; Maryke Gray; Amandine Cournil; Marcel Ooms; Michael Letko; Viviana A. Simon; Paul M. Sharp; Beatrice H. Hahn; Eric Delaporte; Eitel Mpoudi Ngole; Martine Peeters
• Keywords: 0301 basic medicine; 570; Molecular Sequence Data; Simian Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome; Animals, Wild; zoonotic transmission; Zoonotic transmission; Antibodies, Viral; Feces; 03 medical and health sciences; Cytidine Deaminase; Gorilla; Animals; Humans; Cameroon; Epidemics; Phylogeny; Genome; Gorilla gorilla; Geography; Genetic Variation; Sequence Analysis, DNA; gorilla; Biological Evolution; AIDS; SIVgor; Proteolysis; HIV-1; [SDV.SPEE]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Santé publique et épidémiologie; Simian Immunodeficiency Virus

Significance Understanding emerging disease origins is important to gauge future human infection risks. This is particularly true for the various forms of the AIDS virus, HIV-1, which were transmitted to humans on four independent occasions. Previous studies identified chimpanzees in southern Cameroon as the source of the pandemic M group, as well as the geographically more restricted N group. Here, we show that the remaining two groups also emerged in southern Cameroon but had their origins in western lowland gorillas. Although group P has only been detected in two individuals, group O has spread extensively throughout west central Africa. Thus, both chimpanzees and gorillas harbor viruses that are capable of crossing the species barrier to humans and causing major disease outbreaks.