Sharif et al. Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica 2010, 52:1 http://www.actavetscand.com/content/52/1/1 available at http://www.genebee.msu.su). The phyloge- netic trees were displayed in PHYLIP format including bootstrap values. The sequences of ten local isolates showed 96% homology and when compared to published sequences of FCoV, the homology decreased to 93%. The homol- ogy between partial sequences of FCoV isolates from Malaysia were higher than those from different geogra- phical origin (32 strains from USA, 13 strains from Netherlands, two strains from Taiwan, and one strain from UK). These findings support previous observations showing a correlation between different FCoV biotypes with similar geographic background [8]. Multiple sequence alignment showed a few point mutations and single-nucleotide deletions in the sequences of local isolates (Figure 2). These findings indicate single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in FCoVs as described previously [6,20]. No particular pat- tern of mutation or deletion was found in this part of FCoVs genome. Phylogenetic tree constructed by cluster algorithm showed that the sequences were genetically separated in two distinct clusters; all local sequences fell into one main cluster and suggested they may derived from a common ancestor (Figure 3). However, a whole genome sequence is needed to determine genetic pattern of Malaysian FCoVs. Phylogenetic tree constructed by neighbor-joining method showed the phylogenetic relations of the sequences in an unrooted-tree algorithm (Figure 4). In conclusion, the present study indicated that males and young cats are more likely to be diagnosed with FIP. The homology of partial sequences of 3’UTR of FCoV isolates in Malaysia was shown to be higher than those from the other regions. Acknowledgements The authors would like to thank the staffs of the University Veterinary Hospital and cat owners who participate in this project. The study was funded by MOSTI project no. 02-01-04-SF0485: Development of a rapid test for diagnosis of feline coronavirus. Author details 1Department of Veterinary Pathology and Microbiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia. 2Department of Clinical Studies, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia. 3University Veterinary Hospital, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia. Authors’ contributions SSA designed and coordinated the study and helped in draft correction. SSH carried out the molecular studies, performed the RT-PCR assay and sequence analysis and drafted the manuscript. MHB, ARO and NAZ participated in the sequence analysis and proof reading. LSF, NAR, HA and SHSH participated in the collecting of clinical samples. MAHI helped in lab works. All authors read and approved the final manuscript. 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