Research overview: host-virus coevolution in felids

Cats are hosts to feline immunodeficiency virus, feline leukemia virus, and other pathogens whose long association has left marks on both host and viral genomes. This overview surveys how these viruses serve as tools for studying cat population history and as models for human disease, the evidence for genetic resistance variants in cats, and how species-specific strains of feline immunodeficiency virus track the evolutionary history of their hosts across the cat family. It discusses the integration of endogenous retroviruses into feline genomes, the conservation relevance of disease susceptibility in inbred populations, and how host-pathogen coevolution intersects with felid genetics and immunity.