HIV was 5 million years ago

The primeval virus, like a virus that causes AIDS, has existed for at least 5 million years, even 12 million years.

HIV-1, the virus that causes AIDS, has entered humans through the spread of a virus that lives on chimpanzees, called SIV cpz . Previous studies of the age of HIV-like viruses, also known as lentiviruses, show that the virus originated tens of thousands of years ago.

However, Professor Michael Emerman, a virologist, a member of the Department of Human Biology at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, USA and Alex Compton, a recent graduate of the Emerman research lab, gave that the age of lentiviruses is much older than that.

HIV-like virus has been around for 5 million years, even 12 million years ago.

The researchers used the method of tracing the time when the dominant immune gene APOBEC3G changed (this gene is thought to have changed when the presence of lentiviruses in the body of primates).

They found that the dominant immune gene was genetically engineered (the gene to protect the virus from the APOBEC3G immune gene), thereby deducing that at least lentiviruses had invaded primates' bodies. 5.6 million years, even 12 million years.

This finding shows that the infection of HIV-like virus in primates has long been known. This virus has made selective changes in immune genes.

The study also showed that HIV-like viruses are in the body of many monkeys, descended from primates of primates.

'More than 40 primate species in sub-Saharan Africa are infected with a series of HIV-related viruses. Some of these viruses can harm people. So knowing their origin is very important , 'Emerman said.