NEUTRALIZING ANTIBODIES IN CATS INFECTED WITH FELINE IMMUNODEFICIENCY VIRUS

Sera from cats experimentally infected with five isolates of feline immunodeficiency vims (FIV) from various geographical regions and from FIV enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay-seropositive field cats from four European countries neutralized the Petaluma strain of FIV (FIV-P), originally isolated in California, at high titers. In addition, FIV-P and a European isolate proved equally susceptible to neutralization by all sera tested. Coupled with observations by Fevereiro et al. (M. Fevereiro, C. Roneker, A. Laufs, L. Tavares, and F. de Noronha, J. Gen. Virol. 72:617-622, 1991), these findings indicate that most if not all FIV strains circulating in Europe and the United States share important neutralization-inducing epitopes.