a virus that remains dormant in the body for a long time before producing symptoms, as in several neurological diseases, including kuru and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.
any of a class of virus-like disease-causing agents known as prions that are present in the body for a long time before becoming active or infectious and are very resistant to radiation and similar factors: believed to be the cause of BSE and scrapie
slow virusn. Any of a group of animal viruses that cause various diseases that exhibit an unusually slow progressive course, as Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. Also called lentivirus.
