[1] What is a Virus

• This involves looking at all nucleic acid sequences of an organism

  Metagenomics
• T or F: Throughout history, the focus is usually on the effects of the disease rather than the virus itself

  True
• This disease, documented in 1400 BC, was noted to affect lower extremities

  Polio
• This disease manifests as red circles on skin

  Smallpox
• This country has the highest rise of HIV diagnosis worldwide

  Philippines
• HIV is hard to control mostly because of intense mutation
• Due to climate change, Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) have been spreading to temperate regions
• This is the best and most effective method to control viral diseases

  Vaccination
• This involved the introduction of viruses via pustules in order to decrease death rate

  Variolation
• In the 1980s, smallpox was eradicated due to vaccination
• The largest reason for missed vaccinations was the mother being busy
• A study found that the best way to reduce vaccine hesitancy is to warn about missed social benefits
• T or F: Humans can acquire African Swine Fever

  False
• This disease has a higher rate of infection in landlocked countries

  Foot and mouth disease
• Tulips have a rare striped pattern caused by viral infection
• Viral-derived DNA:

  • Long interspersed nucleic elements (LINEs)
  • Short interspersed nucleic elements (SINEs)
  • Retroviral-like elements
  • Transposon-like elements
• Viruses serve as vectors to shuttle genetic material within and across species
• In the Hershey and Chase experiment, bacteriophage was used to pinpoint the molecule of heredity, which is DNA
• Viruses are by far the most abundant biological entities in the oceans, comprising 94 % of nucleic-acid containing particles
• Prokaryotes represent less than 10 % of the nucleic-acid-containing particles, but represent more than 90 % of the biomass
• Label the ff. figure for recombinant protein production

  A) cannot reproduce

  B) A gene is inserted into virus

  C) Altered virus mixed with patient's cells

  D) genetically altered

  E) desired protein

  
• Common definition of a virus:

  Viruses are obligate intracellular parasites
• The Tobacco Mosaic Virus was discovered by Iwanowsky and Beijerinck

  • Cell filtrate, not cell debris, caused the disease
• Three basic requirements for a cell:

  1. Plasma membrane
  2. DNA
  3. Cytoplasm and ribosomes
• Two basic requirements for a virus:

  1. Genetic material
  2. Protein coat (capsule or capsid)
• Ways viruses can store genetic information:

  1. dsDNA
  2. ssDNA
  3. RNA
  4. Linear
  5. Circular
• Label the ff. figure

  A) Protein coat

  B) Nucleic acid

  
• Reed in 1901, through the Yellow Fever virus, proved that the disease was not spread through fomites, but rather vectored by mosquitoes
• Twort and d'Herelle discovered bacteriophages
• Viruses have no ribosomes, and therefore cannot create proteins on their own
• Giant viruses discovered in 2000s were originally called Nucleocytoplasmic Large DNA Viruses (NCLDV)

  • Examples include: Mimivirus and Pandoravirus
• T or F: Viruses can have genomes larger than bacteria

  True
• Infectious structural progeny virus particles

  Virions
• Virions are formed via de novo self assembly
• Criteria for life:

  1. Growth and reproduction
  2. Response to stimuli
  3. Maintenance of homeostasis
  4. Metabolism
  5. Evolution
• T or F: Viruses do not undergo evolution

  False
• Viruses are acellular and do NOT have a common gene that unites them
• 3 types of Virus Origin Proposals:

  1. Progressive or Escape Hypothesis
  2. Regressive Hypothesis
  3. Virus first or Coevolution Hypothesis
• The Progressive hypothesis states that pieces of DNA and RNA escaped the host cell and gained independence
• Proof of the Escape Hypothesis:

  1. Retroviruses existing in the RNA and DNA genome
  2. Selfish genetic elements like transposons and retrotransposons