Definition of Human immunodeficiency virus
1. Noun. The virus that causes acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS); it replicates in and kills the helper T cells.
Medical Definition of Human immunodeficiency virus
1.
A type of retrovirus (human immunodeficiency virus) that is responsible for the fatal illness acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. Two strains have been identified.
Type 1: the retrovirus recognised as the agent that induces AIDS.
Type 2: a virus closely related to HIV-1 that also leads to immune suppression. HIV-2 is not as virulent as HIV-1 and is epidemic only in West Africa.
Acronym: HIV
(11 Nov 1997)
Lexicographical Neighbors of Human Immunodeficiency Virus
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