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HIV is a retrovirus that primarily infects components of the human immune system such as CD4 + T cells, macrophages and dendritic cells. It directly and indirectly destroys CD4 + T cells. [88] HIV is a member of the genus Lentivirus, [89] part of the family Retroviridae. [90] Lentiviruses share many morphological and biological characteristics.
HIV is commonly transmitted via unprotected sexual activity, blood transfusions, hypodermic needles, and from mother to child. Upon acquisition of the virus, the virus replicates inside and kills T helper cells , which are required for almost all adaptive immune responses .
HIV-1 is more virulent and more infective than HIV-2, [20] and is the cause of the majority of HIV infections globally. The lower infectivity of HIV-2, compared to HIV-1, implies that fewer of those exposed to HIV-2 will be infected per exposure. Due to its relatively poor capacity for transmission, HIV-2 is largely confined to West Africa. [21]
On a special episode (first released on September 25, 2024) of The Excerpt podcast: This year, for just the seventh time since the start of the HIV pandemic, a person was cured of the virus. That ...
AIDS-defining clinical conditions (also known as AIDS-defining illnesses or AIDS-defining diseases) is the list of diseases published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that are associated with AIDS and used worldwide as a guideline for AIDS diagnosis.
Lentivirus is a genus of retroviruses that cause chronic and deadly diseases characterized by long incubation periods, in humans and other mammalian species. [2] The genus includes the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), which causes AIDS.
The first identification of HIV-2 occurred in 1985 in Senegal by microbiologist Souleymane Mboup and his collaborators. [28] The first case in the United States was in 1987. [29] The first confirmed case of HIV-2 was a Portuguese man who was treated at the London Hospital for Tropical Diseases and later died in 1987.
As of 2021, the prevalence rate among adults ages 15–49 was 1.2% with 14 000 new HIV cases presenting in both adults and children which is a 28% decrease from 2010. [35] [72] HIV transmission occurs largely through heterosexual intercourse. A greater number of people who get infected with HIV/AIDS are heterosexuals.