Feline immunodeficiency virus | |
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Virus classification ![]() | |
(unranked): | Virus |
Realm: | Riboviria |
Kingdom: | Pararnavirae |
Phylum: | Artverviricota |
Class: | Revtraviricetes |
Order: | Ortervirales |
Family: | Retroviridae |
Genus: | Lentivirus |
Species: | Feline immunodeficiency virus
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Feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) is a Lentivirus that affects cats worldwide, with 2.5% to 4.4%[1][2] of felines being infected.
FIV was first isolated in 1986, by Niels C Pedersen and Janet K. Yamamoto at the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine in a colony of cats that had a high prevalence of opportunistic infections and degenerative conditions and was originally called Feline T-lymphotropic virus.[3] It has since been identified in domestic cats.[4] It has been suggested FIV originated in Africa and has since spread to feline species worldwide.