HIV

HIV is short for Human immunodeficiency virus, which is a member of the genus lentivirus, part of the family retroviridae. Two type of HIV have been characterized: HIV-1 and HIV-2. HIV-1 (Human immunodeficiency virus type 1) is a retrovirus that may produce an acute, usually self-limited mononucleosis-like syndrome but more inevitably causes a broad array of progressive clinical manifestations, widely known as the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). HIV-2 (Human immunodeficiency virus type 2) causes a similar but far less widespread infection and a generally more indolent chronic disease.