GENERAL BIOLOGY 2

(BIO102)
LESSON 1 VIRUS
 Introduction
 No one knows exactly when viruses emerged or from where they
came, since viruses do not leave historical footprints such as fossils.
 They are acellular, parasitic entities that are not classified within any
kingdom.
 Viruses sit on the fence between life and nonlife.
 They are lifelike in having genes and a highly organized structure, but
differ in not being made of cells or able to reproduce on its own.
 Unlike most living organisms, viruses are not cells and cannot divide.
 Instead, they infect a host cell and use the host’s replication
processes to produce identical progeny virus particles.
 They replicate, but to do so, they are entirely dependent on their host
cells.
 They do not metabolize or grow, but are assembled in their mature
form.
 Viruses infect a wide range of organisms eg bacteria, plants, and
animals.
 In many cases, a virus is nothing more than “genes in a box
 A virus is a small parasite that cannot reproduce on it’s own.
 Once it infects a susceptible cell, it can direct the cell
machinery to produce more viruses.
 Most viruses have either RNA or DNA as their genetic material.
 The nucleic acid may be single or double-stranded.
 The entire infectious virus particle is called a VIRION, consists of
the nucleic acid and an outer shell of protein.
 The simplest viruses contain only enough RNA or DNA to
encode four proteins.
 The most complex can encode 100 – 200 proteins.
 WHAT ARE VIRUSES?
1. They are small in size (20-300 nm in diameter)
retaining infectivity after passage through filters able
to hold back bacteria.
2. They are totally dependent upon a living cell, either
eukaryotic or prokaryotic, for replication and existence.
3. Viruses are obligate intracellular parasites.
4. They possess only one species of nucleic acid, either
DNA or RNA.
5. They have a component - a receptor binding protein
for attachment to cells
 CHARACTERISTICS OF VIRUSES
1. They are obligate intracellular parasites of bacteria, protozoa, fungi,
algae, plants, and animals.
2. Ultramicroscopic size, ranging from 20 nm up to 450 nm (diameter).
3. Not cellular in nature; structure is very compact and economical.
4. Do not independently fulfill the characteristics of life.
5. Inactive macromolecules outside the host cell and active only inside
host cells.
6. Basic structure consists of protein shell (capsid) surrounding nucleic
acid core. Together the nucleic acid and its capsid are called a
nucleocapsid.
7. Nucleic acid can be either DNA or RNA but not both.
8. Nucleic acid can be double-stranded DNA, single-stranded DNA,
single-stranded RNA, or double-stranded RNA.
9. Molecules on virus surface impart high specificity for attachment to
host cell.
10. Viruses replicate or multiply. Viruses do not grow.
11. Viruses replicate or multiply only within living cells
12. Multiply by taking control of host cell’s genetic
material and regulating the synthesis and assembly of

new viruses.
13. Lack enzymes for most metabolic processes.
14. Lack machinery for synthesizing proteins
15. Viruses are not cells, do not have nuclei or
mitochondria or ribosomes or other cellular
components.
16. The term virus was coined by Pasteur, and is from
the Latin word for “poison”.
 HOW VIRUSES ARE DISTINGUISHED
 Type of genetic material they contain
 Kind of cells they attack
 Size of virus
 Nature of capsid coat
 Shape of virus
 Presence or absence of envelope
Comparison with cell
 DISCOVERY AND DETECTION

 Viruses were first discovered after the development of a porcelain filter, called
the Chamberland-Pasteur filter, that have pores smaller than bacteria which
could remove all bacteria visible in the microscope from any liquid sample.
 In 1886, Adolph Meyer demonstrated that a disease of tobacco plants,
tobacco mosaic disease(TMB), could be transferred from a diseased plant to a
healthy one via liquid plant extracts.
 In 1892, Dmitri Ivanowski showed that this disease could be transmitted in
this way even after the Chamberland-Pasteur filter had removed all viable
bacteria from the extract.
 It was many years latter that it was proven that these “filterable” infectious
agents were not simply very small bacteria but were a new type of very small,
disease-causing particle.
 In 1899 the Dutch microbiologist Martinus Beijerinck observed that the agent
multiplied only in dividing cells.
 Having failed to demonstrate its particulate nature he called it a "contagium
vivum fluidum", a "soluble living germ".
 CONTINUATION
 In the early 20th century the English bacteriologist Frederick Twort
discovered viruses that infect bacteria
 With the invention of the electron microscope in 1931 by the German
engineers Ernst Ruska and Max Knoll came the first images of viruses
 The breakthrough came in 1931, when the American pathologist
Ernest William Goodpasture grew influenza and several other viruses in
fertilised chickens' eggs.
 In 1935 American biochemist and virologist Wendell Meredith Stanley
examined the tobacco mosaic virus and found it to be mostly made
from protein.
 A short time later, this virus was separated into protein and RNA parts
 The true nature of viruses became evident in the 1930s after the
groundbreaking work of an American scientist, Wendell Stanley. He
prepared an extract of tobacco mosaic virus (TMV), purified it, and
studied its chemical composition. He concluded that TMV was a protein,
and he was partially right. Scientist later discovered that TMV also
contains ribonucleic acid (RNA).
 How are viruses transmitted?

• This usually happens via one of four transmission routes.

• 1. Infection via airborne droplets and particles
• One method of virus spread is the so-called droplet infection.
• This direct transmission route occurs via infected people or animals.
• When we breathe, speak, cough, or sneeze, we emit tiny droplets
(approximately 100 micrometres in size).
• A person infected with a virus that has settled in their throat or
respiratory tract can pass on the virus by coughing, sneezing, talking, etc.
• Smaller droplets, called aerosols (5 micrometres), can remain suspended
in the air longer and be inhaled by other people.
• Droplets containing the pathogen then get onto the mucous membranes
of their next host’s upper respiratory tract and begin multiplying.
• Example: Influenza viruses
2. Contact infection and smear infection
• In contact or smear infections, pathogens are transmitted primarily via
the hands.
• Direct contact means that pathogens are transmitted through physical
contact from an infected person or animal to a non-infected person.
• Example: Herpes simplex viruses (HSV).
• Infection can also occur indirectly, however, as when an uninfected
person touches a contaminated object such as a door handle. Any
pathogens on this object could enter the host through open wounds or
the mucous membranes. One form of indirect contact infection is smear
infection, which occurs fecal-orally via the excreta of infected persons.
• Example: Noroviruses
3. Infection via contaminated water and food
Infection can also spread through contaminated water or food. Such
examples are called indirect contact infections. They often occur in regions
with poor hygiene conditions.
• Example: Hepatitis A virus (HAV).
4. Infection via blood and tissue
• Pathogens can also be transmitted via blood,
tissue, or bodily secretions.
• This can happen directly e.g. through sexual
contact or indirectly from the re-use of a
contaminated needle (Human
immunodeficiency virus (HIV) ), or through the
bite or sting of a bloodsucking insect (Malaria
– indirect transmission from the bite of a
bloodsucking insect)
How Virus Spread
Continuation
Origins Theories
ORIGIN
 MORPHOLOGY OF VIRUSES- SIZE

• The extracellular infectious virus particle is called virion.

• Viruses are much smaller than bacteria.
• They are too small to be seen under the light
microscope.
• Some large viruses like the poxviruses can be seen
under the light microscope when suitably stained.
• The viruses range in size from 20 nm to 300 nm.
• They are 10 – 100 times smaller than a typical
bacterium, and too small to be seen by most optical
microscopes
 Sizes of Viruses
• Viruses are so small that most
cannot be seen by light microscopy.
• They are much smaller than
bacteria.
• Some large viruses like the
poxviruses can be seen under the
light microscope when suitably
stained.
• The viruses range in size from 20
nm to 300 nm.
• They are 10 – 100 times smaller
than a typical bacterium, and too
small to be seen by most optical
microscopes
• It would take 30,000 to 750,000
lying side by side to stretch to a
centimeter
 Viral Shapes
There are three basic types of viral
shapes:
 helical viruses have capsomeres that
spiral around the nucleic acid,
forming a tube-like structure;
 icosahedral or polyhedral Roughly
spherical, a geometric shape with
many sides, similar to a soccer ball.
Most viruses that infect people are
icosahedral;
 complex viruses have capsids of
many different shapes.
 spherical. are helical or polyhedral
viruses that have an envelope around
them. They’re shaped mostly like a
ball
 Viral reproduction
• Viruses can reproduce only when they enter cells
and utilize the cellular machinery of their hosts.
• Viruses’ code their genes on a single type of nucleic
acid, either DNA or RNA, but lack ribosomes and
the enzymes necessary for protein synthesis.
• Viruses are able to reproduce because their genes
are translated into proteins by the cell’s genetic
machinery.
• These proteins lead to the production of more
viruses.
• Viruses can get inside of cells in three ways:
1. Receptor binding: Cells have receptors on the
outside that can receive signals from proteins
in your body.
2. Direct fusion:Some viruses attach directly to
host cells to get inside.
3. Bacteriophages inject their genetic material
into bacterial cells. The entire virus doesn’t
need to get inside.
 MULTIPLICATION OF VIRUSES
• Multiplication of viruses is called viral replication.
• Viruses contain the genetic information for their
replication but they lack the enzymes.
• They depend on host cell machinery for replication.
• The viral replication cycle can be divided into six phases:
1. adsorption,
2. penetration,
3. uncoating,
4. biosynthesis,
5. Assembly (Maturation) and
6. release.
Adsorption:
• In this phase, the virus gets attached to the host cell.
• The host cell should have specific receptors on its surface and these
receptors recognize viral surface components.
• This cell-virus interaction helps the virus to attach to the host cell
surface.
• Because of the exact fit required, viruses have a limited host range
Penetration:
In this phase, the virus enters into the host cell.
• Because bacteria have rigid wall, viruses which infect bacteria cannot
penetrate into the bacterial cell.
• Only the nucleic acid of the virus enters the bacterial cell.
• Animal and human cells do not have cell walls, so therefore, whole
virus enters the cell.
• Virus particle may be engulfed by a process called viropexis.
• In case of enveloped viruses, the viral envelope may fuse with the cell
membrane of the host cell membrane and the nucleocapsid is then
released into the cytoplasm
 Uncoating

This is the process in

which the outer layers
and capsid of the virus
are removed.
• Enzymes in the
vacuole dissolve the
envelope and capsid
• The virus is now
uncoated
 Biosynthesis( synthesis ):

In this phase, the viral nucleic acid and capsid are synthesized
and the enzymes necessary in the various stages of viral
synthesis, assembly and release.
• Certain ‘regulator proteins’ are synthesized and these shut
down the normal metabolism of the host cell.
• They direct the production of viral components.
• In general, most DNA viruses synthesize their nucleic acid
in the host cell nucleus with the exceptions of the
poxviruses which synthesize all their components in the
host cell cytoplasm.
• Most RNA viruses synthesize all their components in the
cytoplasm, but Orthomyxoviruses and some
paramyxoviruses are exceptions.
 Cont’d
• Free viral nucleic acid exerts control over the host’s
synthetic and metabolic machinery
• DNA viruses- enter host cell’s nucleus where they are
replicated and assembled
• DNA enters the nucleus and is transcribed into RNA
• The RNA becomes a message for synthesizing viral
proteins (translation)
• New DNA is synthesized using host nucleotides
• RNA viruses- replicated and assembled in the
cytoplasm
 Summary of Biosynthesis
• Biosynthesis consists essentially of the following
steps:
1. Transcription of messenger RNA (mRNA) from the
viral nucleic acid
2. Translation of mRNA into “early proteins” or “non-
structural proteins”. They are enzymes responsible
for the synthesis of viral components.
3. Replication of viral nucleic acid
4. Synthesis of “late proteins” or “structural proteins”.
They are the components of daughter virion capsids
• Assembly (Maturation):
• Mature virus particles are constructed from the growing
pool of parts.
• Nucleic acids and proteins are put together to form new
viruses during assembly.

• Release:
• Non-enveloped and complex viruses are released when
the cell lyses or ruptures
• Enveloped viruses are liberated by budding or exocytosis.
• Anywhere from 3,000 to 100,000 virions may be released,
depending on the virus
• Entire length of cycle- anywhere from 8 to 36 hours
General features in the multiplication cycle of an
enveloped animal virus
 THE STRUCTURE OF VIRUSES:

1. Viral nucleic acid:

• The viral nucleic acid is located internally and can be either
single- or double- stranded RNA or DNA.
• The nucleic acid can be either linear or circular.
• The DNA is always a single molecule, the RNA can exist either as
a single molecule or in several pieces (segmented).
• Some RNA viruses are positive polarity and others are negative
polarity.
• Positive polarity is defined as an RNA with same base sequence
as the mRNA.
• Negative polarity has a base sequence that is complementary to
the mRNA.
.
 2. Capsid

• The protein shell, or coat, that encloses the nucleic acid genome
and mediates the attachment of the virus to specific receptors
on the host cell surface
Functions
• It protects the nucleic acid from the effects of various enzymes
and chemicals when the virus is outside the host cell
• Capsids and envelopes are also responsible for helping to
introduce the viral DNA or RNA into a suitable host cell, first by
binding to the cell surface and then by assisting in penetration of
the viral nucleic acid
• Parts of viral capsids and envelopes stimulate the immune
system to produce antibodies that can neutralize viruses and
protect the host’s cells against future infections
 3. Capsomeres
Morphologic units seen in electron microscope. Each
capsomere, consisting of one or several proteins.
Naked viruses are composed of nucleic acid + capsid
(nucleocapsid)
 4. Viral envelope
• The envelope is a lipoprotein
membrane composed of lipid derived
from the host cell membrane and
protein that is virus- specific.
• There are frequently glycoproteins in
form of spike-like projections on the
surface, which attach to host cell
receptors.
• Matrix protein mediates the
interaction between the capsid proteins
and envelope.
• The presence of an envelope confers
instability on the virus.
• Enveloped viruses → NA + capsid +
envelope
• The whole virus particle is called virion.
All viruses have a protein capsid, or shell, that surrounds the
nucleic acid in the central core. Together the capsid and the
nucleic acid are referred to as the nucleocapsid

A flowchart representing pattern of organization in a virus

Generalized structure of viruses
 CLASSIFICATION OF VIRUSES

• Viruses are classified on the following criteria: a) Structure

b) Chemical composition c) Similarities in genetic makeup .
• The viruses that infect humans are currently grouped into 21
families, reflecting only a small part of the spectrum of the
multitude of different viruses whose host ranges extend from
vertebrates to protozoa and from plants and fungi to bacteria.
• From the early 1950s, viruses began to be classified into groups
based on their physiochemical and structural features.
• Nomenclature and classification are now the official responsibility
of the International Committee on Taxonomy of /Viruses (ICTV).
• The most commonly used classification method today is called the
Baltimore classification scheme and is based on how messenger
RNA (mRNA) is generated in each particular type of virus.
 Types of Classification

3 Types of systems were proposed to classify the

viruses:
 Baltimore Classification.
 Classical System Classification.
 Genetic Classification.
 Baltimore Classification
• The Baltimore classification, developed by David Baltimore, is a virus
classification system that groups viruses into families, depending on their
type of genome (DNA, RNA, single-stranded (ss), double-stranded (ds), etc..)
and their method of replication.
• 7 groups were made.
• Its principles are fundamental to an understanding of virus classification and
genome replication.
• The Baltimore classification has + RNA as its central point.
• I: dsDNA viruses (e.g. Adenoviruses, Herpesviruses, Poxviruses)
• II: ssDNA viruses (+ strand or "sense") DNA (e.g. Parvoviruses)
• III: dsRNA viruses (e.g. Reoviruses)
• IV: (+)ssRNA viruses (+ strand or sense) RNA (e.g. Picornaviruses, Togaviruses)
• V: (−)ssRNA viruses (− strand or antisense) RNA (e.g. Orthomyxoviruses,
Rhabdoviruses)
• VI: ssRNA viruses (+ strand or sense) RNA with DNA intermediate in life-cycle
(e.g. Retroviruses)
• VII: dsDNA viruses (e.g. Heptadnaviruses)
• Group I: Double-stranded DNA viruses
These types of viruses must enter the host nucleus before they are able to replicate. These
viruses require host cell polymerases to replicate the viral genome and, hence, are highly
dependent on the cell cycle. The mRNA is transcribed regularly from viral DNA using the host's
RNA polymerase II. Examples include Herpesviridae, Adenoviridae, and Papovaviridae.

• Group II: Single-stranded DNA viruses

These viruses have circular genomes (the parvoviruses are the only known exception).
Eukaryote-infecting viruses replicate mostly within the nucleus - usually via a rolling circle
mechanism, forming double-stranded DNA intermediate in the process. Eg.
Anelloviridae, Circoviridae, and Parvoviridae.

• Group III: Double-stranded RNA viruses

As with most RNA viruses, this class replicates in the "Core" capsid that is in cytoplasm, not
having to use the host replication polymerases to as much a degree as DNA viruses. Eg.
Reoviridae and Birnaviridae.

• Group IV: Single-stranded RNA viruses - Positive-sense

The positive-sense RNA viruses and indeed all RNA defined as positive-sense can be directly
accessed by the host ribosomes to immediately form proteins. The single stranded RNA is the
common feature of these viruses. The replication of viruses happens in the cytoplasm or
nucleus. Eg. Astroviridae, Caliciviridae, Coronaviridae
• Group V: Single-stranded RNA viruses - Negative-sense
The negative-sense RNA viruses and indeed all genes defined as negative-sense cannot
be directly accessed by host ribosomes to immediately form proteins. Instead, they must
be transcribed by viral polymerases into a "readable" form, which is the positive-sense
reciprocal. Eg. Arenaviridae, Orthomyxoviridae.

• Group VI: Positive-sense single-stranded RNA viruses that replicate through a DNA
intermediate
One defining feature is the use of reverse transcriptase to convert the positive-sense
RNA into DNA. Instead of using the RNA for templates of proteins, they use DNA to
create the templates, which is spliced into the host genome using integrase. Replication
can then commence with the help of the host cell's polymerases. Eg. Retroviruses.

• Group VII: Double-stranded DNA viruses that replicate through a single-stranded

RNA intermediate
This small group of viruses, exemplified by the Hepatitis B virus (which is in
the Hepadnaviridae family), have a double-stranded, gapped genome that is
subsequently filled in to form a covalently closed circle (cccDNA) that serves as a
template for production of viral mRNAs and a subgenomic RNA. The pregenome RNA
serves as template for the viral reverse transcriptase for production of the DNA genome.
Classification on based on the host:
1. Animal viruses: These viruses infect by invading the cells
of animals, including humans
Eg. Rabies, Polio, Mumps, Chicken pox, Small pox, Influenza, poliovirus,
Herpes virus, etc.
2. Plant Viruses: These viruses infect plants by invading the plant cells.
Replication of plant viruses is obligate and does not happen without a
host.
Examples of plant virus include the potato virus, tobacco mosaic virus
(TMV), beet yellow virus, and turnip yellow virus, cauliflower mosaic virus,
etc.
3. Bacterial Virus: The virus which infects bacterial cells is known as
bacteriophage eg. Bacteriophages ( T1, T2, T3, and T4.)
4. Insect virus
• The virus which infects insects is known as Insect virus, also called the viral
pathogen of insects. These viruses are considered as a powerful bio -
control agent in the landscape of modern agriculture.
• Examples are Ascovirus virions and Entomopox virus,.
 Classification on Genetics basis

• According to genetic consequences viruses are classified as.

• DNA Viruses and RNA Viruses
• Genes may be linear or circular
• The smallest have only 4 genes and largest have several
hundred.
DNA Viruses
• DNA Viruses are the viruses which consist of DNA genome .
• They complete their activities by transcription and most of
them attack on organisms of similar genome.
RNA Viruses
• RNA Viruses are the viruses which consist of RNA genome.
• They complete their activities by reverse transcription.
 Classification on structural basis
• With relevant to morphology of viral
structure viruses are organized as Enveloped
and Non enveloped viruses.
• However they are also subclasses of DNA and
RNA viruses
 Classification based on the replication
properties and site of replication
• Here, viruses invade into the host cell, where it replicates and
assembly within the cell organelles.
1. Replication within the cytoplasm of the host cell.
E.g. All RNA viruses except the Influenza virus.
2. Replication within the nucleus and the cytoplasm of the host cell.
E.g. Influenza virus, Poxvirus, etc.
3. Replication within the nucleus of the host cell.
All DNA viruses except Pox virus.
4. Replication of the virus through the double-stranded DNA
intermediate.
E.g. All DNA viruses, Retrovirus and some tumour causing RNA virus.
5. Replication of the virus through a single-stranded RNA intermediate.
E.g. All RNA viruses except Reovirus( encephalitis and meningitis),and
tumour-causing RNA viruses.
 Classification based on the mode of transmission

1. Airborne infections – Transmission of the virus through the air

into the respiratory tract. E.g. Swine flu, and Rhinovirus.
2. Fecal oral route – Transmission of the virus through the
contaminated water or food.
E.g. Hepatitis A virus, Poliovirus, Rotavirus.
3. Sexually transmitted diseases – Transmission of the virus
through sexual contacts with the infected person. E.g.
Retrovirus, human papillomavirus, etc.
4. Transfusion-transmitted infections- Transmission of the virus
through the blood transfusion.
E.g. Hepatitis B virus, Human Immunodeficiency Virus, etc.
5. Zoonoses -Transmission of the virus through the biting of
infected animals, birds, and insects to human. E.g. Rabies virus,
Alpha virus, Flavivirus, Ebola virus, etc.
 VIRUS INFECTIONS AND HOSTS

• Viruses can be seen as obligate, intracellular parasites. It must attach to a living cell, be
taken inside, manufacture its proteins and copy its genome, and find a way to escape the
cell so that the virus can infect other cells.
• They can infect only certain species of hosts and only certain cells within that host.
• Cells that a virus may use to replicate are called permissive and the permissive cell must
make the substances that the virus needs or the virus will not be able to replicate there.
• Since they cannot multiply on their own, it must enter a cell and use the cell’s enzymes
and ribosomes to make more viruses.
• This process of viral replication has been studied most extensively in bacteria because
bacteria are easier to grow in the laboratory and infect with viruses than are plant or
animal cells.
• Various patterns of viral replication exist. Some viruses enter a cell, replicate and then
cause the cell to burst, releasing the replicated viruses.
• This pattern of viral replication is called the lytic cycle.
• Other types of viruses enter into a long term relationship with the cells they infect, with
their nucleic acid replicating as the cells multiply.
• The viral DNA (phage) integrates into the bacterial chromosome without phage
production or death of the cell.
• This pattern of viral replication is called the lysogenic cycle.
Viral replication
 Lytic Replication of Bacteriophages

• Viruses cannot reproduce themselves because they have neither the genes
for all enzymes necessary for replication nor do they possess functional
ribosomes for protein synthesis.
• Instead, they depend on random contact with a specific host cell type for
the organelles and enzymes to produce new virions
• Viral replication that results in lysis of the cell near the end of the cycle is
termed lytic replication. The cycle consists of five stages:
1. During attachment, the virion attaches to the host cell.
2. During entry, the virion or its genome enters the host cell. In
bacteriophages, only the nucleic acid enters the cell
3. During synthesis, the host cell's metabolic enzymes and ribosomes are
used to synthesize new nucleic acids and viral proteins.
4. During assembly, new virions are spontaneously assembled in the host
cell, typically as capsomeres surround replicated or transcribed nucleic
acids to form new virions.
5. During release, new virions are released from the host cell, which lyses.
 Lysogenic Replication of Bacteriophages

• Not all viruses follow the lytic pattern. Some bacteriophages

have a modified replication cycle in which infected host cells
grow and reproduce normally for many generations before they
lyse. Such a replication cycle is called a lysogenic replication
cycle or lysogeny, and the phages involved are called lysogenic
phages or temperate phages.
• After entry into the host cell, the viral genome does not
immediately assume control of the cell but instead remains
inactive. Such an inactive phage is called a prophage.
• A prophage is always inserted into the DNA of a physical part of
the bacterial chromosome, and is passed on to daughter cells.
Lysogenic phages can change the phenotype of a bacterium by
the process of lysogenic conversion.
• At some point in the generations that follow, a prophage may
be excised from the chromosome in a process known as
induction.
• At that point, the prophage again becomes a lytic virus.
 ANIMAL VIRUSES

• Many animal viruses have an outer envelope made of phospholipid membrane

with projecting spikes of protein.
• The envelope helps the virus to enter or leave a cell.
• Some of the animal viruses have RNA as their genetic material e.g. viruses that
cause cold, measles, mumps AIDS and polio.
• They reproduce in the cytoplasm.
• Animal viruses, unlike the viruses of plants and bacteria, do not have to
penetrate a cell wall to gain access to the host cell.
• Other diseases caused by DNA viruses include hepatitis, chicken pox and herpes
infection.
• They reproduce in the cell’s nucleus and get their envelopes from the cell’s
nuclear membranes. Animal viruses are associated with a variety of human
diseases.
• Some of them follow the classic pattern of acute disease, where symptoms get
increasingly worse for a short period followed by the elimination of the virus from
the body by the immune system and eventual recovery from the infection.
• Other viruses cause long-term chronic infections, such as the virus causing
hepatitis C, whereas others, like herpes simplex virus, only cause intermittent
symptoms.
• Still other viruses, such as human herpes viruses 6 and 7, which in
some cases can cause the minor childhood disease roseola, often
successfully cause productive infections without causing any
symptoms at all in the host, and thus we say these patients have an
asymptomatic infection.
• Some animal-infecting viruses, including the hepatitis C virus are
known as oncogenic viruses: They have the ability to cause cancer.
• These viruses interfere with the normal regulation of the host cell
cycle either by introducing genes that stimulate unregulated cell
growth (oncogenes) or by interfering with the expression of genes that
inhibit cell growth.
• Oncogenic viruses can be either DNA or RNA viruses.
• Cancers known to be associated with viral infections include cervical
cancer caused by human papillomavirus (HPV), liver cancer caused by
hepatitis B virus, T-cell leukemia, and several types of lymphoma.
Other examples of animal virus include; coronaviruses, HIV.
 PLANT VIRUSES

• Most Plant viruses discovered to date have RNA rather than DNA as their genetic material,
e.g. the tobacco mosaic virus.
• Many are rod-shaped with spiral arrangement of proteins surrounding the nucleic acid.
• For infestation to occur virus must first get past the plant’s outer protective layer
(epidermis).
• Plant viruses can be transmitted through a plant damaged by wind, injury and contact with
an infected plant’s sap, insects, nematodes, pollen or man.
• When plants viruses are transferred between different plants, this is known as horizontal
transmission, and when they are inherited from a parent, this is called vertical
transmission.
• Symptoms of viral diseases vary according to the virus and its host.
• One common symptom is hyperplasia, the abnormal proliferation of cells that causes the
appearance of plant tumors known as galls.
• Other viruses induce hypoplasia, or decreased cell growth, in the leaves of plants, causing
thin, yellow areas to appear.
• Other viruses affect the plant by directly killing plant cells, a process known as cell necrosis.
• Other symptoms of plant viruses include malformed leaves, black streaks on the stems of
the plants, altered growth of stems, leaves, or fruits, and ring spots, which are circular or
linear areas of discoloration found in a leaf.
 PREVENTION AND TREATMENT OF VIRAL INFECTIONS

• Viruses cause a variety of diseases in animals,

including humans, ranging from the common cold
to potentially fatal illnesses like meningitis.
• These diseases can be treated by antiviral drugs or
by vaccines, but some viruses, such as HIV, are
capable of both avoiding the immune response
and mutating to become resistant to antiviral
drugs.
• Viruses can be prevented with vaccines, but NOT
treated with antibiotics.
 Vaccines for Prevention

• While we do have limited numbers of effective antiviral drugs, such

as those used to treat HIV and influenza, the primary method of
controlling viral disease is by vaccination, which is intended to
prevent outbreaks by building immunity to a virus or virus family.
• Vaccines may be prepared using live viruses, killed viruses, or
molecular subunits of the virus.
• The killed viral vaccines and subunit viruses are both incapable of
causing disease, while the live viral vaccines are designed in the
laboratory to cause few symptoms in recipients while giving them
protective immunity against future infections.
• Polio was one disease that represented a milestone in the use of
vaccines.
• Mass immunization campaigns in the 1950s (killed vaccine) and
1960s (live vaccine) significantly reduced the incidence of the
disease, which caused muscle paralysis in children and generated a
great amount of fear in the general population when regional
epidemics occurred.
 CONT’D
• The success of the polio vaccine paved the way for the routine
dispensation of childhood vaccines against measles, mumps,
rubella, chickenpox, and other diseases.
• The danger of using live vaccines, which are usually more effective
than killed vaccines, is the low but significant danger that these
viruses will revert to their disease-causing form by back mutations.
• Back mutations occur when the vaccine undergoes mutations in the
host such that it readapts to the host and can again cause disease,
which can then be spread to other humans in an epidemic.
• This type of scenario happened as recently as 2007 in Nigeria where
mutations in a polio vaccine led to an epidemic of polio in the
country.
• Some vaccines are in continuous development because certain
viruses, such as influenza and HIV, have a high mutation rate
compared to other viruses and normal host cells.
 OTHER ACELLULAR ENTITIES: PRIONS AND VIROIDS
• Prions and viroids are pathogens (agents with the ability to cause disease) that have
simpler structures than viruses but, in the case of prions, still can produce deadly
diseases.
PRIONS
• Prions, so-called because they are proteinaceous, infectious particles—smaller than
viruses—that contain no nucleic acids (neither DNA nor RNA).
• Fatal neurodegenerative diseases, such as bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in
cattle (commonly known as “mad cow disease”) were shown to be transmitted by prions.
• The disease was spread by the consumption of meat, nervous tissue, or internal organs
between members of the same species.
VIROIDS
• Viroids are plant pathogens: small, single-stranded, circular RNA particles that are much
simpler than a virus.
• They do not have a capsid or outer envelope, but like viruses can reproduce only within a
host cell.
• Viroids do not manufacture any proteins, and they only produce a single, specific RNA
molecule.
• Viroid’s are known to infect plants and are responsible for crop failures and the loss of
millions of Naira’s in agricultural revenue each year. Some of the plants they infect include
potatoes, cucumbers, tomatoes, avocados, and coconut palms.
 SIMILARITIES & DIFFERENCES
Similarity:
• Viroids and prions are acellular in nature.
Difference:
1. Viroids are infectious RNA molecules whereas prions are
infectious protein particles.
2. Viroids are smaller than viruses whereas prions are
smaller than viroids.
3. Viroids are more complex whereas prions are less
complex.
4. The nucleic acid is present in viroids and absent in prions.
5. Viroids are infectious RNA molecules, whereas prions are
misfolded proteins.
DIFFERENCES BETWEEN BACTERIA AND
VIRUSES
 Virus Uses in Virology

1. Viruses in biological studies

Viruses have been used extensively in molecular and cellular biology studies. These viruses
provide the advantage of being simple systems that can be used to manipulate and investigate the
functions of cells.
Viruses have been used extensively in genetics research and understanding of the genes and DNA
replication, transcription, RNA formation, translation, protein formation and basics of immunology.
2. Viruses in medicine
Viruses are being used as vectors or carriers that take the required material for treatment of a
disease to various target cells. They have been studied extensively in management of inherited
diseases and genetic engineering as well as cancers.
3. Viruses in bacteriophage therapy
These are highly specific viruses that can target, infect, and (if correctly selected) destroy pathogenic
bacteria. Bacteriophages are believed to be the most numerous type of viruses accounting for the
majority of the viruses present on Earth. These are basic tools in molecular biology. They have been
researched for their use in therapy.
4. Viruses in nanotechnology
Nanotechnology deals with microscopic particles. These have various uses in biology and medicine
and nanotechnology has been used in genetic engineering. Viruses can be used as carriers for
genetically modified sequences of genomes to the host cells.
5 Viruses in weapons and biological warfare
Viruses may be tiny but have the capacity to cause death and devastation to large populations in
epidemics and pandemics. This has led to the concern that viruses could be used for biological
warfare.
6 Viruses in agriculture
Modification and genetic engineering methods can be used to make modified genomes
that can be carried into plants and animals by viruses acting as vectors or vehicles.
This method can lead to more productive transgenic animals and plants.
7. Viruses in cancer prevention and control
Similar modifications (as plants and animals in agriculture) of humans have not been
attempted for technical and ethical reasons. But the modification of genes of cells of
individuals has been under investigation for many years. This is known as gene
therapy.
8 Genetics & Genomics eBook
– The key element of gene therapy is the introduction of functioning genes into the cells of a
human patient. This new gene shows desired functions and corrects defective or non-
operational genes within those cells.
– The most common target has been cancers, accounting for almost two-thirds of all clinical trials
to date. Adenoviruses are widely used as vectors, and can be engineered both to enhance
specificity and to minimize unwanted effects.
9 Viruses and vaccines
– Viruses have been used since the time of Edward Jenner in vaccines. Jenner used cow pox
viruses to inoculate people against small pox infection.
– Vaccines against polio, measles, chicken pox etc. use live and weakened viruses causing the
disease or dead virus particles. These, when introduced into an healthy individual, help the
immune system to recognise and mount an immunity against the virus. The body remembers
the organism and attacks it in case of a later infection thus preventing the disease.
 Cont’d
10 Vaccines for cancer prevention
– Vaccines for hepatitis B and those for human papilloma virus protect against liver and cervical
cancer respectively. Both use selected proteins of the virus (subunit vaccines).
11 Virus-directed enzyme prodrug therapy (VDEPT)
– This is a therapy when the target cells are inserted with an enzyme that can activate an inactive
a precursor or inactive form of a cytotoxic drug that is administered systemically. Thus, the active,
cytotoxic form of the drug is only produced where the relevant enzyme is present and active.
– For example, an adenovirus expressing the thymidine kinase (TK) enzyme of herpes simplex virus
can be combined with systemic administration of ganciclovir, which is converted by the TK to its
active form only in cells where this enzyme is present. This is used in HIV treatment.
12. Viruses and biological pest control
– Viruses can also be used to control damaging pests. Traditionally this has been used in agriculture,
but applications exist in the control of agents important to human health as well.
– The types of agents used for this purpose may prey on the target species, may be parasites on the
target pests, be pathogens or cause disease in the target species or may be competing species.
– Viruses used for pest control are commonly pathogens causing disease of the target species.
Although they account for a small amount of total pesticide use, viruses are used for the control
of multiple species of insects and also for rabbits.
– Biological agents can produce long-lasting effects and in some cases are able to spread among the
target population. They have also been recognized as inherently less toxic than conventional
pesticides by the US Environmental Protection Agency.
– Their disadvantages include limited range of action, slow effects compared to chemical agents,
high costs of initial treatment, low environmental stability, particularly in sunlight etc.
 STUDY QUESTIONS
1. Describe viruses? Are they considered living?
2. Describe one way some virus can penetrate their genes
without destroying the cells they infect.
3. How do some viruses reproduce without having a DNA?
4. What are the three ways that viruses can get into a
plant?
5. Describe the differences between bacteria and viruses.
6. Describe the morphology of viruses under the following
headings –structure, shape and symmetry