Mane event: Recombination in lion feline immunodeficiency virus

Parts of feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) isolated from wild lions have undergone substantial genetic recombination, says research published in the online open access journal BMC Genomics. The sequencing of the two full FIV genomes of different lion subtypes shows the importance of whole-genome analysis in understanding complex genetic events. These findings will be relevant to big cat conservation and developing more effective animal models for HIV.