What is a Virus?

• A virus is a noncellular particle made up

of genetic material and protein that can
invade living cells
• Structure
– Core of nucleic acid surrounded by a protein
coat called a capsid
– Capsid can be DNA or RNA, but not both
– Core can be several to several hundred genes
 SO HOW BIG ARE
VIRUSES???
• Viruses are REALLY
small.
• They are much smaller
than bacteria.
• They can only be seen
with an electron
microscope.
 Bacteriophage
• Bacteriophages are viruses that infect
bacteria
• Bacteriophage
– Head – capsid and DNA
– Tail – with fibers to attach to bacteria
 T group
• Most commonly studied are T group – T1,
T2, T3, T4 etc...
• T4 has a DNA core within a protein coat,
and tail with tail fibers to attach to bacteria.
 Viral shapes
• Variety of shapes
– Rod
– Tadpole
– Many sided, helical or cubelike
 VIRUS SHAPES
• Round
• Rod-shaped
• Many sided
(icosohedral)
 SHAPES MAY DIFFER BUT…
• All viruses have
• 1. Chromosome-like part that carries hereditary information – The Core
• 2. Protein coat: Protects hereditary information and provides the shape! The
Capsid
Tobacco Mosaic
T4 Bacteriophage Virus
Influenza
RNA Virus
DNA
Head
RNA
Capsid Capsid
proteins

Tail
sheath
Tail
fiber

Surface
proteins Membrane
envelope
 ROUND VIRUSES
• Herpes virus
–There are
two types:
• Genital
• oral
ROD-SHAPED

• Tobacco
mosaic
virus
 MANY SIDED

• bacteriophage

E coli bacteria
 Is this why viruses infect us?
• YES!
• Viruses need
living
organisms in
order to
reproduce and
form more
viruses!
Injecting DNA virus
 Virus Size
• Size – 20 to 400 nanometers (one
nanometer is one billionth of a meter)
• Specificity – usually infect specific
organisms
– Cannot infect animals if it infects plants
– Some can infect wider variety
– Rabies – all mammals, some birds
VIRUSES ARE SPECIFIC IN
THE CELLS THEY INFECT
Tobacco mosaic virus: only tobacco plants…not
wheat or corn

Rabies: only nervous system cells of mammals

Common cold: infects cells on airway passage to

lungs
 Lytic Infection
• Cause cells to lyse or burst

1. Infection – chance contact virus with right kind of bacterium. Virus

attaches to bacterium and injects its DNA. Most times, complete
virus particle does not enter.
2. Growth – Bacterium can’t tell difference between bacterial and viral
DNA. RNA polymerase causes mRNA to be made from cell for
virus. Viral DNA takes over and produces more DNA and viral
proteins.
3. Replication – Virus uses bacterial material to make thousands of
copies of the protein coat and DNA. Cell becomes filled with virus
particles. (All three stages can happen with E. coli within 25
minutes!)
4. DNA serves as central point for virus particles to be assembled.
Cells fill with virus and lyse (burst). New viruses can now infect new
cells.
SO HOW DO VIRUSES CAUSE
DISEASE?
Section 19-3
Bacteriophage Bacteriophage DNA
protein coat
Bacterial
chromosome

Bacteriophage attaches to
bacterium’s cell wall

Bacteriophage enzyme lyses the

bacterium’s cell wall, releasing
new bacteriophage particles that
can attack other cells.
Lytic Cycle

Bacteriophage injects DNA

into bacterium

Bacteriophage proteins and

nucleic acids assemble into
complete bacteriophage
particles
Bacteriophage takes over Bacteriophage
bacterium’s metabolism, causing Bacteriophage DNA
synthesis of new bacteriophage
proteins and nucleic acids Bacteriophage protein
 Retroviruses
• RNA viruses
• When they infect a cell, they produce DNA
copies of their RNA genes.
• Retroviruses have their genetic information
copied backwards. RNA  DNA
• One retrovirus is HIV. Others cause cancer in
animals and humans.
• The theory is that viruses were not the first living
things. They are dependent on living things to
survive.
 EUBACTERIA AND
ARCHAEBACTERIA:
The two bacterial
kingdoms

Bacteria on a pin head

 Eubacteria
• “True” bacteria
• largest Kindgom of prokaryotes
• generally surrounded by cell wall composed of
complex carbohydrates
• have a cell membrane (some have 2 cell
membranes)
• Some have flagella for movement
• Found everywhere
• Some produce disease
• Some photosynthetic
• some very useful – cheese is just one example
 PROKARYOTIC CELLS
• Prokaryote – what does that mean?
Classification of Prokaryotes
• All prokaryotes were in kingdom Monera.
• Now – 2 kingdoms
– Eubacteria and archaebacteria
 Archaebacteria
• Archaebacteria includes organisms that
live in very harsh environments
• Methanogens – live in oxygen free
environments – mud, digestive tracts of
animals
• Extremely salty environments
• Hot springs
 Identifying Bacteria
• Cell Shape
– Rod – bacilli
– Sphere – cocci
– Spiral – spirilla
 Bacterial Shapes

Round Rod Spiral

 Arrangement
• 2 cocci – diplococci
• long chains – streptococci
• clumps, clusters – staphylococci
 Cell Wall
• Chemical nature – Gram staining
• Hans Christian Gram
• 2 dyes – crystal violet (purple) and safranine (red)
– bacteria either take one or the other
– If only one thick layer of carbohydrate and protein
molecules outside the cell membrane – picked up crystal
violet – appeared purple – GRAM POSITIVE
– If cell had 2nd, outer layer of lipid and carbohydrate –
picked up safranine – appeared red GRAM NEGATIVE
 Bacterial movement
• propelled by flagella
• lash, snake, or spiral forward
• no movement
 Bacterial Respiration
• Obligate aerobes – require oxygen
• Obligate anaerobes – must live in
absence of oxygen
– example is Clostridium botulinum
• Facultative anaerobes – can live with or
without oxygen
 Reproduction
• Some can reproduce every 20 minutes
• Held in check by food and production of wastes
Types:
• Binary Fission
• Replication of DNA and division in half
• Asexual
• Conjugation
• Sexual – involves the exchange of genetic material
• Long bridge of protein forms between the cells
• Donor genetic information transferred to recipient through
bridge
• Recipient cell has different genes at the end than it did to
begin with
 Importance of Bacteria
• Used in production of products we use every day
• Yogurt
• Cheese
• Buttermilk
• Sour cream
• Pickles
• Sauerkraut
• Vinegar
• Wine
• Industry
• digest petroleum
• remove wastes and poisons from water
• synthesizing drugs – through genetic engineering
 Symbiotic Relationships
(mutuallism)
• E. coli in humans – help us digest food –
make vitamins we can’t, we give them a
home, food, and transportation
• Bacteria in the intestines of cattle allow
them to break down cellulose (in grass
and hay)
 Bacteria in the Environment
• Bacteria are like the stage hands that
allow the show to go on without being
seen (or always given the credit)
• Bacteria recycle and decompose dead
material
• Saprophytes – organisms that use the
complex molecules of a once living
organism as their food source
 Nitrogen Fixation
• All organisms are TOTALLY dependent on
monerans for Nitrogen
• All Plants need nitrogen to make amino acids (-
NH2)
• Because animals eat plants, they get their
proteins from plants
• What percentage of the air is Nitrogen?
• Plants, and most other organisms cannot use
this directly
• Need Nitrogen to be “FIXED” chemically as
ammonia
Diseases caused by Viruses and Monerans

• only a small number of viruses and

bacteria can cause disease

• Pathogens – organisms that cause

disease
• All viruses infect living cells
• Disease occurs when infection causes
damage to the cells
 Viruses and Disease
• Examples are:
– Small Pox
– Polio
– Measles
– AIDS
– Mumps
– Influenza
– Yellow Fever
– Rabies
– Common Cold
– Ebola etc…
 Vaccine
• The body’s own defenses must be used
• Vaccine – dead or weakened viruses that
stimulate the bodies defense system
• Symptoms can be treated sometimes, but
once someone is infected by a virus, there
is not much science can do
 Bacteria and Disease
• Bacterial diseases include:
– Diptheria
– TB
– Typhoid
– Tetnus
– Hansen disease
– syphilis
– cholera
– bubonic plague
– Flesh Eating Bacteria
 2 ways bacteria cause disease
1. Damage cells and tissues of infected
organisms directly by breaking down cells
2. Releasing toxins (poisons)
• Many bacteria can live without a host organism
(on a petri dish)
• Rickettsiae cannot live outside a host cell. They
have leaky cell walls
• Rickettsiae cause Rocky Mountain Spotted
Fever, typhus, and Legionnaire’s disease