NEET BIOLOGY

Detailed explanation-1: -HIV is classified as a retrovirus because it contains reverse transcriptase. It is a D-type virus in the Lentivirus family.

Detailed explanation-2: -HIV belongs to a class of viruses known as retroviruses. Retroviruses use RNA to encode their genetic information rather than DNA, as human cells do.

Detailed explanation-3: -Besides human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), the virus that causes AIDS, there a two other retroviruses that can cause human illness. One is called human T-lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1) and the other is called human T-lymphotropic virus type 2 (HTLV-II).

Detailed explanation-4: -HIV is a retrovirus, which means it carries single-stranded RNA as its genetic material rather than the double-stranded DNA human cells carry. Retroviruses also have the enzyme reverse transcriptase, which allows it to copy RNA into DNA and use that DNA “copy” to infect human, or host, cells.

Detailed explanation-5: -There are five known human retroviruses: human T-lymphotropic virus-I (HTLV-I), HTLV-II, HTLV-V, human immunodeficiency virus-1 (HIV-1), and HIV-2.