Recent Progress in Foamy Virus (FV) Research

Dear Colleagues,

Foamy viruses are ancient retroviruses that naturally occur in non-human primate species and in a variety of other animal species including bovine, equine, and feline. However, human foamy virus infections have been shown to be due to cross-species transmission from infected non-human primates. Although there is no evidence thus far of FV pathogenesis in any species, human exposure should be minimized since infectious foamy virus can stably persist life-long. Studies of virus replication and latency, virus prevalence in the natural host, and human infections can contribute to evaluating  the potential risks of FV infection in humans. Based upon several unique properties of these ancient retroviruses and the lack of known pathogenicity, foamy viruses are being developed as novel vectors for targeted gene delivery and vaccination, with recent improvements for new applications in experimental systems and medicine.

The main focus of this special issue is to review the current knowledge of FVs and present an update of FV research. The topics will include, but not limited to:

• Simian and non-simian FVs: Overview
• Natural infections
• Zoonoses
• Evolution
• Molecular Biology and Replication
• Viral proteins
• FV vectors
• Restriction factors
• Antivirals
• Virus detection assays
• Management of potential sources of exposure and infection

Dr. Arifa S. Khan
Prof. Dr. Martin Löchelt
Prof. Dr. Axel Rethwilm
Guest Editors