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Journals
Viruses
Special Issues
Antiviral Resistance Mutations
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Antiviral Resistance Mutations

A special issue of Viruses (ISSN 1999-4915). This special issue belongs to the section "Viral Immunology, Vaccines, and Antivirals".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 June 2024 | Viewed by 758

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Ilaria Vicenti

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Medical Biotechnologies, University of Siena, Siena, Italy
Interests: flaviviruses; HIV-1; SARS-COV-2; antivirals; cell-based viral assays; drug resistance; live virus neutralization
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Francesco Saladini

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Medical Biotechnologies, University of Siena, Siena, Italy
Interests: HIV-1; flaviviruses; antivirals; cell-based viral assays; drug resistance; viral genetic evolution

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In viral genomes, mutations occur spontaneously and rapidly, creating new viral strains with properties that differ from the parental or wild-type virus. The mutation rate varies across different families of viruses, with lower levels for DNA viruses and higher rates for RNA viruses and with genome size, viral polymerases and proofreading activity playing a key role. Many mutations have no effect or are harmful to the virus; however, some can alter the antigenicity or pathogenicity of the virus or lead to resistance to antiviral drugs. Depending on selective pressure, mutations can persist in chronically infected individuals and be transmitted to newly infected individuals. Antiviral drug resistance is a serious public health threat and may impact on our response to epidemics and pandemics. The emergence of SARS-CoV-2 variants, resulting in evasion from vaccine-induced immunity and from therapeutic monoclonal antibodies, and the extraordinary plasticity of HIV quasispecies conferring resistance to various classes of drugs are key examples of the global impact of antiviral resistance, underscoring the importance of ongoing research, surveillance, and adaptation of medical interventions. In this Special Issue, we provide original and review articles describing the phenomenon of viral resistance leading to escape from immune response (natural or artificial) and from antiviral therapies. The articles included in this Special Issue will focus on viral genome mutations leading to viral drug-resistant phenotypes in different contexts such as acute and persistent infections, natural and drug-driven virus evolution, and interactions among mutations and between mutations and fitness. Dealing with drug resistance is and will remain an obligatory step both in antiviral drug development and in clinical use of available antivirals. 

Dr. Ilaria Vicenti
Dr. Francesco Saladini
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Viruses is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • antiviral resistance
  • virus evolution
  • viral genome mutation
  • drug-resistant phenotypes
  • immune escape

Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

15 pages, 1832 KiB  
Article
Applying Next-Generation Sequencing to Track HIV-1 Drug Resistance Mutations Circulating in Portugal
by Victor Pimentel, Marta Pingarilho, Cruz S. Sebastião, Mafalda Miranda, Fátima Gonçalves, Joaquim Cabanas, Inês Costa, Isabel Diogo, Sandra Fernandes, Olga Costa, Rita Corte-Real, M. Rosário O. Martins, Sofia G. Seabra, Ana B. Abecasis and Perpétua Gomes
Viruses 2024, 16(4), 622; https://doi.org/10.3390/v16040622 - 17 Apr 2024
Viewed by 427
Abstract
Background: The global scale-up of antiretroviral treatment (ART) offers significant health benefits by suppressing HIV-1 replication and increasing CD4 cell counts. However, incomplete viral suppression poses a potential threat for the emergence of drug resistance mutations (DRMs), limiting ART options, and increasing HIV [...] Read more.
Background: The global scale-up of antiretroviral treatment (ART) offers significant health benefits by suppressing HIV-1 replication and increasing CD4 cell counts. However, incomplete viral suppression poses a potential threat for the emergence of drug resistance mutations (DRMs), limiting ART options, and increasing HIV transmission. Objective: We investigated the patterns of transmitted drug resistance (TDR) and acquired drug resistance (ADR) among HIV-1 patients in Portugal. Methods: Data were obtained from 1050 HIV-1 patient samples submitted for HIV drug resistance (HIVDR) testing from January 2022 to June 2023. Evaluation of DRM affecting viral susceptibility to nucleoside/tide reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs), non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NNRTIs), protease inhibitors (PIs), and integrase strand transfer inhibitors (INSTIs) was performed using an NGS technology, the Vela Diagnostics Sentosa SQ HIV-1 Genotyping Assay. Results: About 71% of patients were ART naïve and 29% were experienced. Overall, 20% presented with any DRM. The prevalence of TDR and ADR was 12.6% and 41.1%, respectively. M184V, T215S, and M41L mutations for NRTI, K103N for NNRTI, and M46I/L for PIs were frequent in naïve and treated patients. E138K and R263K mutations against INSTIs were more frequent in naïve than treated patients. TDR and ADR to INSTIs were 0.3% and 7%, respectively. Patients aged 50 or over (OR: 1.81, p = 0.015), originating from Portuguese-speaking African countries (PALOPs) (OR: 1.55, p = 0.050), HIV-1 subtype G (OR: 1.78, p = 0.010), and with CD4 < 200 cells/mm3 (OR: 1.70, p = 0.043) were more likely to present with DRMs, while the males (OR: 0.63, p = 0.003) with a viral load between 4.1 to 5.0 Log10 (OR: 0.55, p = 0.003) or greater than 5.0 Log10 (OR: 0.52, p < 0.001), had lower chances of presenting with DRMs. Conclusions: We present the first evidence on TDR and ADR to INSTI regimens in followed up patients presenting for healthcare in Portugal. We observed low levels of TDR to INSTIs among ART-naïve and moderate levels in ART-exposed patients. Regimens containing PIs could be an alternative second line in patients with intermediate or high-level drug resistance, especially against second-generation INSTIs (dolutegravir, bictegravir, and cabotegravir). Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Antiviral Resistance Mutations)
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