Viruses

Viruses
Viruses

A. Characteristics
B. Structure and Function
C. Classification
D. Diseases

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 A. Characteristics

1. A virus is an infectious
particle that can cause
disease
2. Smaller than a cell (25-250
nanometers)
a. Shadow Casting
3. Needs host cell to reproduce
4. Not alive… Origin?
a. Degenerate Evolution
b. Escaped Nucleic Acids
“Click” c. Extraterrestrial_
 B. Structure and Function

1. Composed of DNA or RNA

surrounded by a protein coat
called a capsid
2. Some are surrounded by a
membrane (envelope)
3. Many shapes: helical, head and
tail, or icosahedral_
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 4. Reproduce only in living cells
by lytic and lysogenic “life”
cycles
a. lytic cycle takes over and
kills rapidly
b. lysogenic cycle waits in
“Click” “Click” the cell until the
organism is weak, then
enters the lytic cycle
(Transduction by
temperate phage)
Prophage – DNA inserted
into bacteria host genome
Provirus – DNA inserted into
a human chromosome_
 5. HIV is a retrovirus that
causes AIDS
a. able to evolve rapidly_

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C. Classification

1. DNA Viruses – inject DNA

into host (2 options)
a. DNA codes for new RNA
b. DNA fuses with host DNA
2. RNA Viruses
a. Direct protein synthesis
b. Retrovirus – uses reverse
transcriptase to make
new DNA (HIV)_
3. Viroids
a. Smallest replicating
particles
b. Short, single strand of
naked RNA
c. Causes disease in plants
4. Prions
a. Disease causing
glycoprotein particle
containing approx. 250
amino acids
b. No nucleic acids
c. (Ex. Kuru, Scrapie, Mad
Cow Disease)_
D. Diseases

1. Each infects a certain host or

hosts and cause disease in:
a. animals and plants
b. fungus and protists
c. even bacteria
(bacteriophage)_
2. Spread by insects, air, water,
and people
3. Controlled by:
a. Antibodies- help destroy
viruses by attaching to
them

b. Vaccines-

1. Inactivated – Can’t
replicate
2. Attenuated –
Genetically altered to
not cause disease (best
and longest protection)_
c. Interferon- interferes
with double stranded
RNA
d. Antiviral drugs
1. Acyclovir – Herpes
and Chickenpox
(mimics nucleosides)
2. AZT – AIDS
3. Protease Inhibitors
e. Eradication - Smallpox_
E. Examples (Shapes)

1. Polyhedral
Warts
Polio
Hepatitis
Colds
Conjunctivitis
Sore throat
Respiratory
Intestinal_
2. Enveloped Polyhedral
Herpes
Chicken Pox
Shingles
Mono_
3. Helical
Smallpox – Last Case 1977
Tobacco Mosaic –
(Crystallized in 1935 by
Wendell Stanley – First to
determine that viruses are
not made of cells)_
4. Enveloped Helical
Flu A, B, C
Rabies_
5. Glycoprotein Enveloped
Complex
AIDS (uncoating)_
F. Examples (DNA/RNA)

1. DNA Viruses
Papoviruses – Warts, Cancer
Adenoviruses – Resp/Intest
Herpesviruses – herpes
simplex, chickenpox,
shingles, mono
Poxviruses – smallpox,
cowpox_
2. RNA Viruses
Picornaviruses – Polio,
Hepatitis A, Cancer
Myxoviruses – Influenza A,
B, C; Hepatitis B, C
Rhabdoviruses - Rabies
Retroviruses - AIDS,
Cancer_
G. Future

1. Emerging Viruses – Viruses

that “jump species” when we
invade new habitats
(ex. Ebola, Aids, SARS)
2. Viruses and Cancer
a. HTLV – Leukemia
b. Hepatitis B – Liver Cancer
c. Epstein-Barr – Burkitts
Lymphoma
d. HPV – Cervical Cancer_
3. Mimivirus
CHARACTERISTICS
a. Genome of 1.2 million
letters (10x a typical virus)
b. 1000+ genes (100x typical
virus) including genes for
translation and DNA repair
enzymes
c. Both DNA and RNA_
 IMPLICATIONS
a. Mimi-like ancestor may
have emerged prior to other
domains (New domain may be
called for)
b. Mimi-likes may have
evolved into cells
c. Mimi-likes may have
become nucleus (Both
replicate using cell
machinery, both have
enzymes for capping RNA,
both have linear DNA
d. We may have evolved
from viruses
e. Blurs distinction between
life/non-life (Human genome
contains more retrovirus
DNA than actual genes)_
THE END
Viruses

A. Characteristics
B. Structure and Function
C. Diseases
 A. Characteristics

1. A virus is an infectious
particle that can cause
disease
2. Smaller than a cell and can
only be seen with an electron
microscope
3. Acts as a parasite which
“lives” on and gets food from
a host organism
4. Not alive_

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C. Classification

3. Viroids
a. Smallest replicating
particles
b. Short, single strand of
naked RNA
c. Causes disease in plants
4. Prions
a. Disease causing
glycoprotein particle
containing approx. 250
amino acids
b. No nucleic acids
c. (Ex. Kuru, Scrapie, Mad
Cow Disease)_
4. Reproduce only in living cells
by lytic and lysogenic “life”
cycles
a. lytic cycle takes over and
kills rapidly
b. lysogenic cycle waits in
the cell until the
organism is weak, then
enters the lytic cycle_