Feline coronavirus

Feline coronavirus (FCoV) is a positive-stranded RNA virus that infects cats worldwide. It is a coronavirus of the species Alphacoronavirus 1, which includes canine coronavirus (CCoV) and porcine transmissible gastroenteritis coronavirus (TGEV). FCoV has two different forms: feline enteric coronavirus (FECV), which infects the intestines, and feline infectious peritonitis virus (FIPV), which causes the disease feline infectious peritonitis (FIP).

Feline coronavirus is typically shed in feces by healthy cats, and transmitted by the fecal-oral route to other cats. In environments with multiple cats, the transmission rate is much higher compared to single-cat environments. The virus is insignificant until mutations cause it to be transformed from FECV to FIPV. FIPV causes feline infectious peritonitis, for which treatment is generally symptomatic and palliative only. The drug GS-441524 shows promise as an antiviral treatment for FIP, but at the moment it still requires further research. The drug GC376 is also being studied and developed.