DNA viruses (see Table 4-1)

Transcription
o occurs by host-cell, DNA-dependent RNA polymerases (except for virionassociated RNA polymerase of poxviruses).
o results in transcripts that must have a poly A tail and methylated cap added before
translation.
o occurs in a specific temporal pattern, such as immediate early, delayed early, and
late mRNA transcription.
o may be followed by posttranscriptional processing of primary mRNA transcripts
(late adenovirus transcripts).
o occurs in the nucleus (except for poxviruses).

Translation
o occurs on cytoplasmic polysomes.
o is followed by transport of newly synthesized proteins to the nucleus (except for
poxviruses).

Genome replication
o is semiconservative.
o is performed by a DNA-dependent DNA polymerase, which may be supplied by
the host cell (adenoviruses) or may be virus specific (herpesviruses).
o occurs after the synthesis of the early proteins.

Assembly
o occurs in the nucleus (except for poxviruses).
o is frequently an inefficient process that leads to accumulation of viral proteins that
may participate in the formation of inclusion bodies (focal accumulations of
virion or viral gene products).

C. RNA viruses (see Tables 4-2, 4-3, 4-4)

The viral genome

o may be single-stranded or double-stranded and segmented or nonsegmented.

o may have messenger (positive-sense) polarity if it is single-stranded and able to
act as mRNA (picornaviruses and retroviruses).
o may have antimessenger (negative-sense) polarity if it is single-stranded and
complementary to mRNA (orthomyxoviruses and paramyxoviruses).
o is ambisense if it is single-stranded with segments of messenger polarity and
segments of antimessenger polarity.

Transcription
o involves an RNA-dependent RNA polymerase for all viruses, except retroviruses,
which use a host-cell, DNA-dependent RNA polymerase.
P.127

o involves a virion-associated enzyme (transcriptase) with negative-sense viruses.

Translation
o occurs on cytoplasmic polysomes.
o may result in the synthesis of a large polyprotein that is subsequently cleaved (in
posttranslational processing) into individual viral polypeptides (picornaviruses
and retroviruses).

Genome replication
o occurs in the cytoplasm (except for orthomyxoviruses and retroviruses).
o is performed by a viral-specific replicase enzyme (except for retroviruses).
o involves a replicative intermediate RNA structure for all single-stranded RNA
genomes.
o is asymmetric and conservative for double-stranded RNA genomes.