Retrovirus Evolution

Retroviruses manifest a very rich ensemble of genome structures. The evolution of retroviruses varies enormously, with fixation rates varying by as much as a million fold. The emergence of novel genome structures follows remorselessly with the fixation of point mutations and is most apparent for the lentivirus subgroup that has burst on the scene recently. Accordingly, bio-logic suggests that new genome structures will emerge among the lentiviruses, most notably HIV-1.