Unit 10 Flashcards
Describe viruses
Found everywhere
Goal: to infect cells
Can exists but cannot replicate outside of cells (can only replicate inside host cells) And their life cycle depends on infection
Can infect bacterial/animal/plant cells
10-1000 nanometers (smaller than bacteria) (second smallest -first is a prion) can only see with an electron microscope
NOT cells, considered particles
Define Bacteriophage
Viruses that infect bacteria
What is a virion
A completely assembled infectious virus particle outside its host cell
What are 4 components of viruses (which 2 do ALL viruses have?)
Every virus has
A protein shell called a Capsid
Genetic material
SOME have protein protruding from the surface (spikes)
SOME have an envelope
A capsid and the enclosed genome is called the
Nucleocapsid
Capsid is made up of protein sub units called
Capsomeres (usually 1-3 different proteins arranged in repeating units)
Viral proteins located on the outside of viruses are
Important for attaching to host cells during infection and are what the immune system identifies viruses by
What are the 3 basic shapes of viruses
Icosahedral (20 sided structure)
Helical (hollow tube)
Complex (doesn’t fit into other categories)
Each can have an envelope or not
Describe enveloped viruses
Viruses surrounded by a phospholipid membrane called the envelope
The envelope is derived from the host cell membrane
More easily damaged (detergents, drying, heat and disinfectants easily damage the phospholipid layer that is needed for structure)
Describe naked viruses compared to enveloped viruses
Naked viruses are more resistant to heat, drying, and many disinfectants (only some disinfectants are labeled against naked viruses)
Describe complex viruses
Includes bacteriophages
Distinct shape with;
1) head: contains genetic info
2) spikes: attach to bacterial surface
3) tails: insert into bacterial cell and acts as a tube that the viral genome enters into the cytoplasm through
Describe the viral genome
Depending on the virus the genome can be made up of:
1) double or single stranded DNA
2) double or single stranded RNA
Viruses are classified by their genome type
The type of genome they have affects how viruses infect cells and how drugs are designed to stop infections
True or false
Viruses have very few genes
True
Most of the genes viruses have encode what?
Capsid proteins
Proteins that allow the virus to attach to host cells
Special enzymes involved in replication of genomes made up of RNA and single stranded DNA
In order to replicate, viruses need more enzymes than they have genes for, where do they get these enzymes and what does this explain?
Extra enzymes come from the cells they infect
Explains why viruses can only replicate inside cells
Describe the virus life cycle
Virions exist in host of environment
Virus attaches to a host cell (determined by viral attachment proteins that bind to proteins in the surface of the cell)
Either the viral genome alone or within the capsid enter the host cell
It hijacks the DNA replication machinery and the protein synthesis machinery of the cell
Synthesis of copies of the viral genome and viral proteins begins
Capsid proteins self assemble around a copy of the viral genome
The new virus particles are released from the host cell
What is the Lytic Virus Cycle
Only applies to viruses WITHOUT an envelope
Cells that are infected continue to produce virus particles, when the cell releases these virus particles the cell lysis
Host cell dies once the virus particles are released
What is the non lytic virus cycle
Only applies to enveloped viruses
Virus particles self assemble in the cytoplasm, at the same time special virus proteins are inserted into the host cells’ plasma membrane. The virus capsule binds to the proteins in the cell membrane, the virus wraps itself in a phospholipid bilayer in the process of budding
Virus are continually being produced and released from the cell -the cell remains infected for longer periods of time and does not lyse on release of the virus
True or false
Many viruses are considered part of normal flora
FALSE
there a very few viruses considered to be part of normal flora