Murray S M, Linial M L
Division of Basic Sciences, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98109, USA.
J Med Primatol. 2006 Aug;35(4-5):225-35. doi: 10.1111/j.1600-0684.2006.00171.x.
Foamy viruses (FV), the oldest known genus of Retroviridae, are unique among the retroviruses in having no disease association. It is not known why FV are non-pathogenic while infection by their closest relatives can be deadly. This may be related to the estimated 60 million years of coevolution of FV and their primate hosts. We review the current state of knowledge of FV infection, including information about the sites of viral replication and host immune responses, and discuss the role these may play in establishing persistent yet non-pathogenic infections. Whether FV has pathologic consequences in immunosuppressed hosts has not been thoroughly investigated. As most primates in HIV/SIV research are coinfected with FV, investigation into possible interactions between these viruses is of interest. The use of FV as a vector for gene therapy is also discussed.
泡沫病毒（FV）是逆转录病毒科中已知最古老的属，在逆转录病毒中独一无二，与疾病没有关联。目前尚不清楚为什么FV无致病性，而其近亲病毒的感染却可能致命。这可能与FV及其灵长类宿主估计长达6000万年的共同进化有关。我们综述了FV感染的当前知识状态，包括病毒复制位点和宿主免疫反应的信息，并讨论了这些因素在建立持续但无致病性感染中可能发挥的作用。FV在免疫抑制宿主中是否具有病理后果尚未得到充分研究。由于HIV/SIV研究中的大多数灵长类动物都同时感染了FV，因此对这些病毒之间可能的相互作用进行研究很有意义。本文还讨论了将FV用作基因治疗载体的情况。
