Phylogenetic analysis to define feline immunodeficiency virus subtypes in 31 domestic cats in South Africa

R Kann,J Seddon,T Schoeman,J Meers,M Kyaw-Tanner,J.P Schoeman

doi:10.4102/jsava.v77i3.356

R Kann, J Seddon + Show 4 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.4102/jsava.v77i3.356

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Abstract

Feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV), a lentivirus, is an important pathogen of domestic cats around the world and has many similarities to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). A characteristic of these lentiviruses is their extensive genetic diversity, which has been an obstacle in the development of successful vaccines. Of the FIV genes, the envelope gene is the most variable and sequence differences in a portion of this gene have been used to define 5 FIV subtypes (A, B, C, D and E). In this study, the proviral DNA sequence of the V3-V5 region of the envelope gene was determined in blood samples from 31 FIV positive cats from 4 different regions of South Africa. Phylogenetic analysis demonstrated the presence of both subtypes A and C, with subtype A predominating. These findings contribute to the understanding of the genetic diversity of FIV.

Highlights

Feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) was first isolated in 1986 from a group of cats in California that were exhibiting signs of an immunodeficiency syndrome[27]
Sequence analysis Up to 682 nucleotides, representing the V3–V5 region of the env gene were sequenced from 31 blood samples of FIV infected cats from 4 regions of South Africa (GenBank accession numbers DQ873700-DQ873733)
Phylogenetic analysis Analysis of pairwise genetic distances is indicative of the presence of 2 subtypes within South Africa with pairwise genetic distances of up to 38.1 % observed with the su5-su[6] sequences, whereas the su3-su[4] sequences showed a maximum pairwise genetic distance of 14.8 %4,12

Summary

Introduction

Feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) was first isolated in 1986 from a group of cats in California that were exhibiting signs of an immunodeficiency syndrome[27]. It has subsequently been classified as a lentivirus in the Retroviridae family based on morphology and genome organisation[23,26]. Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a member of the genus Lentivirus and both viruses behave in their respective hosts[2]. Seroepidemiological surveys have revealed a worldwide distribution of FIV with variable prevalence. The same surveys recorded prevalences in sick cats of 14 % and 44 %, respectively

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