VIRUSES AND PRIONS o Shell surrounds the nucleic acid

o Nucleocapsid: capsid and nucleic acid together

Early Virus Discoveries  Envelope
 Pasteur developed a vaccine for rabies o Not found in all viruses
o Coined the term "virus" (Latin for poison) o Usually, a modified piece of the host cell membrane
 Ivanovski and Beijernick: tobacco disease caused by virus  Spikes
 Loeffler and Frosch: foot-and-mouth disease caused by a virus o Found on both naked and enveloped viruses
o Project from either the nucleocapsid or envelope
Filterable Virus o Allow viruses to dock with their host cells
 Infectious fluids were passed through porcelain filters designed to trap
bacteria Other Virus Terms
 The cell-free filtered fluid remained infectious  Naked viruses
 This proved that an agent smaller than bacteria was the cause of the o Consist only of a nucleocapsid
disease  Virion
o Fully formed virus able to establish infection in a host
Viruses on the Biological Spectrum
 Viruses can infect every type of cell Generalized Structure of Viruses
o Bacteria
o Algae The Viral Capsid: The Protective Outer Shell
o Fungi  Capsomeres
o Protozoa o Identical protein subunits that spontaneously self assemble to
o Plants form the capsid
o Animals

Unique Properties of Viruses

 Infectious particles
o Rather than organisms
 Active or inactive
o Rather than alive or dead
 Obligate intracellular parasites
 Cannot multiply unless they invade a specific host cell
 Must instruct the genetic and metabolic machinery of the host cell to
make and release new viruses

Properties of Viruses
 Are not cells
 Are obligate intracellular parasites of bacteria, protozoa, fungi, algae,
plants, and animals
 Do not independently fulfill the characteristics of life
 Helical capsid
 Are inactive macromolecules outside the host cell and active only
o Rod-shaped capsomeres that form a continuous helix around the
inside host cells
nucleic acid
 Have basic structure of protein shell (capsid) surrounding nucleic acid
 Icosahedral capsid
core
o Three-dimensional, 20-sided figure with 12 evenly spaced
 Are ubiquitous in nature and have had major impact on dev’t of
biological life corners
 Are ultramicroscopic in size, ranging from 20nm to 1000nm
Helical Nucleocapsids
(diameter)
 Can have either DNA or RNA but not both
 Can have double-stranded DNA, single-stranded RNA, or double-
stranded RNA
 Carry molecules on surface that determine specificity for attachment
to host cell
 Multiply by taking control of host cell’s genetic material and
regulating the synthesis and assembly of new viruses
 Lack enzymes for most metabolic processes
 Lack machinery for synthesizing

THE GENERAL STRUCTURE OF VIRUSES

Viral Size Range

 Smaller than average bacterium
 Electron microscopes are required to detect them
o Parvoviruses: 0.02 um in diameter
o Mimiviruses: 450 nm in length– larger than some small bacteria
o Cylindrical viruses: 0.8 um long, but 0.015 um in diameter

Viruses Bear no Resemblance to Cells

 Lack protein-synthesizing machinery
 Need only those parts required to invade and control a host cell
 External coating
 Core containing nucleic acids

Viral Components
 Capsid
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Icosahedral Capsids

Other Substances in the Virus Particle

 Enzymes for specific operations within the host cell:
o Polymerases: synthesize DNA and RNA
The Viral Capsid o Replicases: copy RNA
 Complex capsids: o Reverse transcriptase: synthesizes DNA from RNA
 Found in bacteriophage, the viruses that infect bacteria  Substances from the host cell:
 Have multiple types of proteins o Arenaviruses pack along host ribosomes
 Take shapes that are not symmetrical o Retroviruses “borrow” the host’s tRNA molecules

Nonenveloped and Enveloped Viruses CLASSIFICATION AND NOMENCLATURE OF VIRUSES

 Informal classification system

o Animal, plant, or bacterial viruses
o Enveloped or naked
o DNA or RNA viruses
o Helical or icosahedral
 Criteria of a formal classification system:
o Structure
o Chemical composition
o Similarities in genetic makeup
 Virus orders:
o Suffix -virales
 Virus families:
o Suffix -viridae
 Virus genera:
o Suffix -virus
The Viral Envelopes
 Composed of the membrane systems of the host Examples from the Nine Orders of Viruses
o Cell membrane or nuclear membrane  See ppt slides 28 – 32
o Regular membrane proteins are replaced with viral proteins
o Spikes: protruding glycoproteins essential for attachment to the MODES OF VIRAL MULTIPLICATION
host cell
Multiplication Cycles in Animal Viruses
Nucleic Acids: At the Core of a Virus  Adsorption
 Genome: the full complement of DNA and RNA carried by a cell  Penetration
 Viruses contain either DNA or RNA but not both  Uncoating
o The number of viral genes is small compared to that of a cell  Synthesis
o Possess only the genes necessary to invade host cells and  Assembly
redirect their activity  Release from the host cell

Nucleic Acids General Features in the Multiplication Cycle of RNA Animal Viruses
 Positive-sense RNA General Features in the Multiplication Cycle of DNA Animal Viruses
o Single-stranded RNA genomes ready for immediate translation  See ppt slides 35 – 36
into proteins
 Negative-sense RNA Adsorption
o RNA genomes that need to be converted into the proper form to  Invasion begins when the virus encounters a susceptible host and
be made into proteins adsorbs specifically to receptor sites on the cell membrane
o Adsorb: to attach (like a virus)
o Absorb: to soak in (like a paper towel)

Host Range
Viral Nucleic Acid  A virus can invade its host cell only through making an exact fit with
a specific host molecule
 Restricted host range: hepatitis B only infects liver cells of humans
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  Moderately restrictive host range: polivirus infects intestinal and nerve o Furnishes several embryonic tissues that supports viral
cells of primates multiplication
 Broad host range: rabies virus infects various cells of all mammals
Using Cell (Tissue) Culture Techniques
Penetration and Uncoating of Animal Viruses  Cell culture or tissue culture: in vitro cultivation systems
 Endocytosis: entire virus is engulfed by the cell and enclosed in a o A simple and effective way to grow populations of isolated
vacuole or vesicle animal cells in sterile dishes or bottles
 Uncoating: enzymes in the vacuole dissolve the envelope and capsid, o Most viruses are propagated through cell culture
releasing the virus into the cytoplasm o Much of a virologist’s work involves developing and
maintaining cultures
Synthesis: Replication and Protein Production
 Viral nucleic acid takes control over the host’s synthetic and Appearance of Normal and Infected Cell Culture
metabolic machinery
o Mechanism varies depending on whether the virus is a DNA or
RNA virus
o RNA viruses replicate in the cytoplasm
o DNA viruses replicate in the nucleus

Nucleus of a Eukaryotic Cell, Containing Hundreds of Adenovirus Virions

Primary Cell Cultures

 Freshly isolated animal tissue is placed in a growth medium
 Cells undergo mitotic division, producing a monolayer on the surface
 Retain the characteristics of the original tissue from which they were
derives

Release of Mature Viruses Continuous Cell Cultures

 Enveloped viruses are liberated by budding or exocytosis:  Have altered chromosome numbers
o Nucleocapsid binds to the membrane  Grow rapidly
o A small pouch is formed  Show changes in morphology
o Pinching off the pouch releases the virus with its envelope  Can be continuously subcultured if they are given fresh nutrient media
o Viruses are shed gradually w/o destruction of the cell
Detecting Viral Growth in Culture
TECHNIQUES IN CULTIVATING AND IDENTIFYING ANIMAL VIRUS  Degeneration and lysis of infected cells
o In vivo methods: viral cultivation in lab animals or embryonic bird o Plaques
tissues – Clear, well-defined patches in the cell sheet
o In vitro methods: viral cultivation in cell or tissue culture – Macroscopic manifestations of cytopathic effects
 Primary Purpose of Viral Cultivation: – Develops when viruses released from an infected cell
– Isolate and identify viruses in clinical specimens radiate out to surrounding cells and infect them
– Prepare viruses for vaccines – Infection spreads gradually and symmetrically from the
– Do details research on viral structure, multiplication cycles, original point of infection
genetics, and effects on host cells
VIRUSES AND HUMAN HEALTH
Using Live Animal Inoculation  Impossible to measure the number of viral infections worldwide
 Specially bred strains of animals used for animal cultivation of  Most common cause of acute infections that do not result in
viruses: hospitalization:
o White mice o Colds, chickenpox, influenza, herpes, warts
o Rats  Some have high mortality rates:
o Hamsters o Rabies, Ebola
o Guinea pigs  Other viral infections lead to long-term debility:
o Rabbits o Polio, neonatal rubella
 Injection sites for viral exposure:
Designing Therapies Against Viruses
o Brain
 Viruses mutate at a rapid rate
o Blood
 Difficult to design therapies against viruses
o Muscle
 Scientists focus on developing vaccines against viruses since so few
o Body cavity
antiviral drugs are available and antibiotics are ineffective
o Skin
 Interferon (IFN)
o Footpads
o Naturally occurring human cell product
o Used with some success in preventing and treating viral
Using Bird Embryos
infections
 Benefits of using bird embryos
o Embryonic dev’t occurs in a protective shell
PRIONS AND OTHER NONCELLULAR INFECTIOUS AGENTS
o Intact and self-supporting unit with its own sterile environment
and nourishment Other Noncellular Infectious Agents
 Spongiform encephalopathies
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 o Implicated in chronic, persistent disease in humans and animals
o Brain tissue removed from affected animals resembles a sponge
 Prions
o Common feature of spongiform encephalopathies
o Distinct protein fibrils deposited in brain tissue of affected
animals

Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (CJD)

 Afflicts the CNS of humans
 Causes gradual degeneration and death
 Transmissible by an unknown mechanism
 Several animals are victims of similar diseases:
o Scrapie: sheep, milk, elk
o Bovine spongiform encephalopathy: cows

Prion Infection
 Exact mode of infection is unknown
 Protein composition of prions has revolutionized ideas of what can
constitute an infectious agent
 Questions about how prions replicate given that they have no nucleic
acid

Satellite Viruses
 Dependent on other viruses for replication
 Adeno-associated virus (AAV)
o Originally thought that it could only replicate in cells infected
with the adenovirus
o Now found to infect cells infected with other viruses or that have
had their DNA disrupted through other means

Viroids
 Virus-like agent that parasitizes plants
 About one-tenth the size of an average virus
 Composed only of naked strands of RNA– lack a capsid or other type
of coating
 Significant pathogens in economically important plants: tomatoes,
potatoes, cucumbers, citrus trees, and chrysanthemums

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