Human immunodefeciency virus (HIV) is subdivided into 2 types, HIV-1 and HIV-2, both of which are believed to be the result of zoonotic transmission. Humans are being increasingly exposed to many different simian immunodeficiency viruses (SIVs) in wild primates, for example through the hunting and butchering trade in Africa. This human exposure to SIVs may lead, or has already led, to transmission of SIVs with the potential to cause new epidemics. Unfortunately, new zoonotic transmissions may go undetected because of the lack of SIV-specific tests. Thus, there is the potential to compromise the safety of the blood donor supply system and possibly to seed a new HIV-like epidemic. This invention addresses these problems by providing a way to test for the many divergent strains in monkeys and humans to identify primary infection and prevent secondary transmission.

Inventors: Marcia Kalish, Clement Ndongmo, Chou-Pong Pou, William Switzer, Thomas Folks

CDC Reference Number: I-023-02/0

USPTO Serial Number: 60/462,071

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