May 2, 1985
Dear Harold,
In response to your letter of April 26 concerning the nomenclature of the retrovirus group, I have the following thoughts.  I agree it should not be called AIDS virus.  I also think it should be called HTLV because that designation is historical and does not distinguish between the tumor inciting activity of HTLV 1 and 2 and the depressant activity of the AIDS virus.  I would think that the designation should have the human and the T-cell specific concepts and somehow should convey the immunodepressant or cytocidal effect.  I would propose something like HTIV or HTCV.
I wish you the best success in this enterprise.
Yours sincerely,
Renato Dulbecco, M.D.