A virus similar to one that commonly kills dogs may also be shortening the legendary nine lives of cats.
Hong Hong researchers say they have found the virus in stray cats suffering from a fatal kidney inflammation and plan further tests to see if the virus causes the symptoms.
Research team leader Yuen Kwok-yung said he expected the findings, if confirmed, to lead to the development of vaccines and drugs to treat cats.
'Cats are humans' close friends,' said Yuen, chair professor of the University of Hong Kong's department of microbiology. 'I believe that the findings will bring good news to many cat owners.'
The bug, feline morbillivirus, is related to the virus that causes mumps and measles in humans and distemper in dogs.
Researchers discovered that cats suffering from kidney tubule inflammation, a leading cause of death among felines, also had the virus, according to the findings, published in the latest edition of a US science journal, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Another team member, Professor Patrick Woo Chiu-yat, said that as the morbillivirus caused severe brain damage and death in dogs, they wanted to see if anything similar could be found in cats.