HIV

Short description
HIV is the human immunodeficiency virus, which infects important cells of the human immune system. In an HIV infected person, the immunodeficiency disease AIDS can develop.
Synonyms
Human immunodeficiency virus

Detailed description

HIV is an RNA virus. Inside infected cells, its genetic information is transcribed into DNA, which is integrated into the host genome. It then serves as a template for the production of new virus particles. Diseases caused by HIV rank among the most common causes of death. It is estimated that 1.8 million people were newly infected with HIV in 2016, most of them in Africa. DZIF dedicates one out of nine research fields to the pathogen HIV.