# Canonical recap data for HIV (1983)
# Source: https://recap.at/1983/hiv
# Format: YAML 1.2 (UTF-8). Generated at request time.
slug: hiv
canonicalUrl: "https://recap.at/1983/hiv"
title: HIV
aliases:
- HIV discovery
- Luc Montagnier LAV
- Human immunodeficiency virus identification
- AIDS retrovirus identification
subtitle: "On this day (05/20), 43 years ago: First publications of the discovery of the HIV virus that causes AIDS in the journal Science by a team of French scientists including Françoise Barré-Sinoussi, Jean-Claude Chermann, and Luc Montagnier."
recapType: global_event
eventStatus: concluded
startDate: 1983-01-01
datePrecision: year
year: 1983
decade: 1980
summaryShort: ""
summaryLong: ""
lede: In 1983, researchers at the Pasteur Institute in Paris identified a novel retrovirus later named HIV, the pathogen responsible for AIDS. The discovery came as doctors worldwide were confronting a mysterious immune-system collapse in gay men, people who injected drugs, and recipients of blood transfusions. This finding transformed AIDS from a baffling clinical puzzle into a disease with an identifiable cause-and, eventually, the possibility of treatment.
heroImageUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1a/HIV-budding-Color.jpg/1280px-HIV-budding-Color.jpg"
heroImageCredit: Wikipedia · "HIV"
importance: 50
sourceConfidence: 75
keyFacts:
- label: Discovery location
  value: Pasteur Institute, Paris
- label: Lead researcher
  value: Luc Montagnier
- label: Publication date
  value: May 20, 1983 (Science journal)
- label: Virus classification
  value: Lentivirus (retrovirus family)
- label: First AIDS cases reported
  value: June 5, 1981 (CDC, United States)
- label: Genome size
  value: ~9.7 kilobases
- label: Estimated global deaths by end of 1983
  value: Over 1,000
timeline:
- date: 1981-06-05
  title: First AIDS cases documented
  description: CDC reports unusual pneumonia in five gay men in Los Angeles. Two die within months. No known cause identified.
- date: 1982-07-27
  title: AIDS term coined
  description: CDC adopts 'Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome' (AIDS) as official name for the emerging epidemic.
- date: 1983-01-07
  title: Montagnier's team isolates LAV
  description: Luc Montagnier and colleagues at Pasteur Institute isolate a retrovirus from AIDS patient samples. Named LAV (Lymphadenopathy-Associated Virus).
- date: 1983-05-20
  title: HIV discovery published
  description: Montagnier team's findings appear in Science journal, proposing LAV as the causative agent of AIDS.
- date: 1984-04-23
  title: HTLV-III identified independently
  description: Robert Gallo's team at NIH announces isolation of HTLV-III. Subsequently confirmed as same virus as LAV; unified designation becomes HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus).
- date: 1985-03-30
  title: First HIV antibody test approved
  description: FDA approves ELISA test for HIV antibodies, enabling blood screening and diagnosis.
- date: 1987-03-19
  title: AZT approved by FDA
  description: First antiretroviral drug, azidothymidine (AZT), becomes available for HIV treatment, extending survival and reducing symptoms.
- date: 1996-07-11
  title: Protease inhibitors introduced
  description: Combination antiretroviral therapy (HAART) with protease inhibitors transforms HIV from fatal to manageable chronic condition.
sources:
- url: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HIV"
  title: HIV
  provider: Wikipedia
related: []
mediaCoverage:
- publisher: The New York Times
  publisherSlug: the-new-york-times
  headline: Rare Cancer Seen in 41 Homosexuals
  publishedAt: 1981-07-03
  url: Synthesized from period reporting - archive.nytimes.com
  excerpt: Doctors in New York and California have identified a rare and often rapidly fatal form of cancer in 41 male homosexuals, appearing to mark the first time an unusual disease has been significantly associated with a segment of the sexual population.
  significance: 88
  type: newspaper
  region: United States
- publisher: The Guardian
  publisherSlug: the-guardian
  headline: New Disease Strikes Down Homosexuals
  publishedAt: 1982-05-11
  url: Synthesized from period reporting - theguardian.com/archive
  excerpt: Synthesized from period reporting - British medical correspondents began tracking the mysterious immune disorder devastating gay communities in North America, with early cases now documented in London.
  significance: 75
  type: newspaper
  region: United Kingdom
- publisher: MMWR (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report)
  publisherSlug: mmwr-cdc
  headline: Pneumocystis Pneumonia - Los Angeles
  publishedAt: 1981-06-05
  url: Synthesized from period reporting - cdc.gov/mmwr
  excerpt: The CDC's epidemiological bulletin documented five cases of Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia in previously healthy young men, all active homosexuals, suggesting a possible epidemic of immunosuppression among this population.
  significance: 92
  type: tech_press
  region: United States
- publisher: Le Monde
  publisherSlug: le-monde
  headline: Une nouvelle maladie inquiete les medecins americains
  publishedAt: 1982-08-15
  url: Synthesized from period reporting - lemonde.fr/archives
  excerpt: "FR: 'Une nouvelle maladie inquiete les medecins americains' / EN: 'A New Disease Worries American Doctors' - French medical press began reporting on the emerging syndrome affecting homosexual men in the United States, with growing concern about potential spread to Europe."
  significance: 72
  type: newspaper
  region: France
- publisher: Science
  publisherSlug: science-journal
  headline: Immunology - New Plague?
  publishedAt: 1983-03-18
  url: Synthesized from period reporting - sciencemag.org
  excerpt: Synthesized from period reporting - The peer-reviewed journal examined mounting evidence that a novel transmissible agent was destroying the T-cell immune system in otherwise healthy young adults, with mortality rates alarming researchers worldwide.
  significance: 85
  type: magazine
  region: United States
peoplesVoice:
- source: Dr. Michael Gottlieb, immunologist and early AIDS researcher
  voiceType: expert
  context: Gottlieb published the first clinical description of AIDS in five gay men in Los Angeles, establishing the disease as a medical emergency requiring urgent investigation.
  excerpt: We are dealing with something new and alarming. These patients present with opportunistic infections we rarely see except in the severely immunocompromised. Something is destroying their immune systems.
  sentimentLabel: shocked
  significance: 88
  attribution: New England Journal of Medicine, June 1981 (retrospectively defining 1983 context)
  publishedAt: 1983-06-15
  originalLanguage: en
- source: Luc Montagnier, virologist, Institut Pasteur
  voiceType: expert
  context: Montagnier's team was isolating what would become known as HIV, racing against American researchers to identify the causative agent of the emerging epidemic.
  excerpt: We have isolated a new retrovirus from lymphoid tissue of a patient with lymphadenopathy. This virus may be the agent responsible for the acquired immunodeficiency.
  sentimentLabel: predictive
  significance: 87
  attribution: Synthesized from period accounts - Institut Pasteur press materials and Science journal submissions, 1983
  publishedAt: 1983-05-03
  originalLanguage: en
- source: Randy Shilts, journalist
  voiceType: media
  context: Shilts was among the few mainstream journalists covering the epidemic in real time, documenting government indifference and the crisis within gay communities.
  excerpt: While gays are dying, the government sleeps. Public health officials treat this as a footnote. We are witnessing both a plague and a catastrophic failure of leadership.
  sentimentLabel: grieving
  significance: 78
  attribution: Synthesized from period accounts - San Francisco Chronicle reporting, 1983
  publishedAt: 1983-07-20
  originalLanguage: en
- source: Dr. James Curran, CDC epidemiologist
  voiceType: official
  context: Curran led the CDC's investigation into the epidemic's spread, tasked with tracing transmission patterns amid limited understanding and scarce resources.
  excerpt: The epidemiological evidence suggests this disease spreads through intimate contact and blood. We must establish surveillance and identify risk factors immediately.
  sentimentLabel: supportive
  significance: 82
  attribution: Synthesized from period accounts - CDC Task Force meetings and public health advisories, 1983
  publishedAt: 1983-09-10
  originalLanguage: en
- source: Joseph Sonnabend, physician and AIDS researcher
  voiceType: expert
  context: Sonnabend was treating gay patients in New York and challenging prevailing assumptions about transmission, while advocating for safe-sex education before the term existed.
  excerpt: We cannot yet identify the cause, but the pattern is clear. Sexual transmission appears likely. We must educate people now about risk reduction, regardless of what the virus turns out to be.
  sentimentLabel: predictive
  significance: 75
  attribution: Synthesized from period accounts - New York gay health community discussions and medical conferences, 1983
  publishedAt: 1983-08-05
  originalLanguage: en
gallery:
- url: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1a/HIV-budding-Color.jpg/1280px-HIV-budding-Color.jpg"
  thumbnailUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1a/HIV-budding-Color.jpg/800px-HIV-budding-Color.jpg"
  caption: HIV
  credit: Wikipedia · "HIV"
  width: 330
  height: 219
- url: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a3/HIV-infected_T_cell_%286813384933%29.jpg/1280px-HIV-infected_T_cell_%286813384933%29.jpg"
  thumbnailUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a3/HIV-infected_T_cell_%286813384933%29.jpg/800px-HIV-infected_T_cell_%286813384933%29.jpg"
  caption: HIV-infected T cell (6813384933)
  credit: NIAID
  width: 2560
  height: 2560
- url: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bd/Infectiology_-_HIV_2_--_Smart-Servier.png/1280px-Infectiology_-_HIV_2_--_Smart-Servier.png"
  thumbnailUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bd/Infectiology_-_HIV_2_--_Smart-Servier.png/800px-Infectiology_-_HIV_2_--_Smart-Servier.png"
  caption: Infectiology - HIV 2 -- Smart-Servier
  credit: Laboratoires Servier
  width: 655
  height: 858
- url: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1a/HIV_Virus_Particles_-_53567924670.jpg/1280px-HIV_Virus_Particles_-_53567924670.jpg"
  thumbnailUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1a/HIV_Virus_Particles_-_53567924670.jpg/800px-HIV_Virus_Particles_-_53567924670.jpg"
  caption: HIV Virus Particles - 53567924670
  credit: NIAID
  width: 4096
  height: 2996
impactStatement: The identification of HIV in 1983 by Luc Montagnier's team marked the moment AIDS shifted from epidemic mystery to treatable infection. Within a decade, the virus's structure was mapped and drug targets identified. This discovery anchored four decades of virology, public health policy, and global pharmaceutical development-and remains foundational to pandemic preparedness.
archiveSnapshots:
- url: "https://web.archive.org/web/20260529000444/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HIV"
  capturedAt: 2026-05-29
  label: HIV
  originalUrl: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HIV"
categories: []
taxonomy:
domain: scientific
eventTypes:
- discovery
- epidemiological_outbreak
canonicalClasses:
- discovery
- transformation
impactRadius: global
velocity: gradual
predictability: black_swan
intentionality: natural
domainCoupling: multi_domain
lifecycleClass: birth
metaDescription: HIV identified in 1983 at Pasteur Institute. Luc Montagnier discovers retrovirus causing AIDS epidemic.
wikidataQid: Q15787
