Virus Structure and Multiplication Flashcards
What is a pathogen?
Any parasitic organism causing infectious disease.
What is pathogenicity?
Ability of a parasite to cause disease.
What is virulence?
Degree of intensity of pathogenicity.
What is an inactive virus outside of a cell referred to as?
A virion.
What do viruses exist as intracellularly?
Nucleic acids.
How do viruses play a role in the evolution of bacteria?
They transfer genes between bacteria.
What are bacteriophages?
Bacterial viruses.
Are there any viruses that target archaea?
A few.
What 4 traits are used to classify most viruses into families?
- Genetic relatedness.
- Genome structure.
- Morphology.
- Life cycle.
What is the average size of most virions?
~20 nm.
What do all virions contain?
A nucleocapsid.
What are the 3 capsid shapes?
- Helical.
- Icosahedral.
- Complex.
What are the two functions of the capsid?
- To protect the viral genetic material.
- Aid in the transfer between host cells.
What is a capsid?
A large macromolecule structure that serves as the protein coat of the virus.
What are the characteristics of a helical capsid?
- Hollow tube shape.
- Self-assembles.
- Length of capsid is a function of nucleic acid.
What are the characteristics of an icosahedral capsid?
- Equilateral triangles fused into a spherical shape that encloses genetic material.
- 20 equilateral faces.
- 12 vertices.
- Has ring or knob-shaped units made of 5 or 6 protomers.
What are the characteristics of a complex capsid?
Has characteristics of both helical and icosahedral capsids.
ex: Poxviruses.
What kind of symmetry do large bacteriophages have?
Binal symmetry (head is icosahedral, tail is helical).
What is the outer, flexible, membranous layer surrounding many viruses called?
The envelope.
Where does the envelope usually arise from?
The cell plasma or nuclear membrane of the host.
What are envelope proteins also called?
- Spikes.
- Spike proteins.
- Peplomers.
What are the functions of envelope proteins?
- Viral identification.
- Viral attachment to the host cell.
- Some have enzymatic activity.
- Some have a role in nucleic acid replication.
What does the viral genome look like?
2x or 1x stranded DNA or RNA.
*Linear or circular.
What is step 1 of viral multiplication?
Attachment/Adsorption.
How does the virus attach to the host cell?
Through specific receptors on the surface of the cell.
Is each virus specific to a certain cell receptor?
No, some viruses can use more than one receptor, use more than one host, or both.
What is step 2 of viral multiplication?
Entry into the host.