Project description:Studying the evolutionary mechanisms of feline immunodeficiency virus in the domestic cat (Felis catus), FIV(Fca), provides a good comparison to other lentiviruses, such as HIV and FIV(Pco) in the cougar (Puma concolor). We review the current epidemiological and evolutionary findings of FIV(Fca). In addition to the five accepted FIV(Fca), subtypes, several recent phylogenetic studies have found strains that form separate clades, indicative of novel subtypes. In New Zealand cats, these strains of unknown subtype have been found to be involved in complex patterns of intergenic recombination, and whole genome sequences are required to resolve these. Evidence of recombination events has been documented with the highest levels in the env gene, the region involved in host cell receptor recognition. Several cases of FIV(Fca) multiple infections, both inter- and intra-subtype, have been reported. The findings of both unknown subtypes and relatively high levels of recombination suggest the need for further testing of the current vaccine. Limited studies on the evolutionary rate of FIV(Fca) document a value twice to three times that of FIV in the cougar, a result suggesting the different levels of co-adaptation between the viruses and their respective hosts. We studied the tissue distribution of FIV(Fca) in feral domestic cats, finding the first case of FIV compartmentalisation, a phenomenon well documented in HIV-1 patients.
Project description:Fetal mice (16 days gestation) were administered feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV)-based lentiviral viral particles containing the gene encoding GFP. Six liver tumors developed in three mice between the ages of 273 and 484 days, each mouse developed 2 tumors. These tumors and non-tumorous liver tissue from the same animals and animals that did not develop tumors and untransduced controls were harvested and microarrays were performed on total RNA extracted from these samples. We were interested in investigating the link between lentiviral integration and gene expression. Keywords: Comparison of HCC with non-tumorous liver tissue adjacent to tumor.
Project description:Fetal mice (16 days gestation) were administered feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV)-based lentiviral viral particles containing the gene encoding GFP. Six liver tumors developed in three mice between the ages of 273 and 484 days, each mouse developed 2 tumors. These tumors and non-tumorous liver tissue from the same animals and animals that did not develop tumors and untransduced controls were harvested and microarrays were performed on total RNA extracted from these samples. We were interested in investigating the link between lentiviral integration and gene expression. Keywords: Comparison of HCC with non-tumorous liver tissue adjacent to tumor. Fourteen samples were analyzed in total: Two tumors from each of three mice (6 samples); surrounding non-tumorous liver tissue from each of these three mice (3 samples); two female mice and one male mouse that were transduced and did not develop tumors (3 samples); one female and one male untransduced mouse (2 samples). The samples were performed in two runs: one containing the samples from female mice and the second containing samples from male mice.