Dr. Krippin begins the film by stating she has genetically engineered a cancer treatment from the measles virus. Measles has a (-)ssRNA genome and is enveloped. Measles has a medium genome (roughly 16,000 bases), with helical symmetry (Waterson, 1109). A member of the Paramyxoviridiae family, in Baltimore class V, measles replicates entirely in the cytosol of the host cell, using host cell machinery and suppressing the host immune response (Yunagi, 1).
Measles is transmitted through the air and primarily infects the respiratory tract. Upon completion of the life cycle, the virus will enter the blood and travel to lymphatic, often targeting the kidneys (Yunagi, 1). The viral hemagglutinin attaches to the host cell primarily using a CD150+ receptor. The envelope of the virion will fuse with the host cell membrane, and the genome will enter the cell (Baldo, 1102). The attachment and entry phases of the life cycle are being modified for gene therapy of tumors, where the virus will preferentially bind to CD46 rather than CD150+ (Russell, 214). CD46 is expressed in higher concentration on the membranes of cancer cells, allowing this modification to forward
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The M proteins begin to associate as new genome copies are produced, forming an early nucleocapsid. The capsid is helical, stemming from the association between the N proteins coating the genome. The associations allow for the condensing of the genome, creating a spring-like shape for the viral capsid. The nucleocapsid forms around the genome, utilizing units of M proteins, rather than the capsid forming independently and then injecting the genome in through a pore. Protein synthesis ceases as this process begins. The nature of the measles proteins only sustains unassociated protein levels for a short time, roughly 20 minutes, necessitating efficient genome replication and viral assembly (Plumet,
The Measles starts with a fever, runny nose, cough, red eyes, and sore throat. It is then followed by a rash that spreads over the body, starting first on the face along the hairline. The infectious period of measles is 4 days before rash onset through 4 days after rash onset. The measles are a highly contagious virus that lives in the nose and throat mucus and spreads through the air through coughing and sneezing. (WHO, 2016). The measles virus can remain airborne for up to an hour after the infected person has left the area. The measles are so contagious that if one person has it, 90% of the unvaccinated people close to them will become infected. Rarely can the virus be deadly. The incubation period for
The Mumps virus seems to have been around since ancient times. Research says that the virus has been documented or recorded by the Hippocrates in 5th century BCE (Mumps Epidemiology and Prevention of Vaccine-Preventable Diseases). We give credit to Johnson and Goodpasture for helping determine how the virus is spread. This particular virus has been and still is known worldwide but became a reportable disease in the United States in 1968. The history behind the Mumps is not very detailed but today we are able to prevent this disease here in the US.
The virus is primarily spherical shaped and roughly 200nm in size, surrounded by a host-cell derived membrane. Its genome is minus-sense single-stranded RNA 16-18 kb in length. It contains matrix protein inside the envelope, hemagglutinin and neuraminidase, fusion protein, nucleocapsid protein, and L and P proteins to form the RNA polymerase. The host-cell receptors on the outside are hemagglutinin and neuraminidase. The virus is allowed to enter the cell when the hemagglutinin/ neuraminidase glycoproteins fuse with the sialic acid on the surface of the host cell, and the capsid enters the cytoplasm. The infected cells express the fusion protein from the virus, and this links the host cells together to create syncitia.
...y into a cell it usually will not function the desired way. Instead, a carrier called a vector is genetically engineered to deliver the gene. Certain viruses are often used as vectors because they can deliver the new gene by infecting the cell. The viruses are modified so they can’t cause disease and will not be fought off by the patient’s immune system. The vector can be injected or given by IV directly into a specific place in the patient’s body. The vector can also be introduced after , a sample of the patient’s cells are removed and exposed to the vector in a lab. The cells with the vector are then returned to the patient.
First, the internalization of the virus was determined. Three stages were identified for the internalization to occur. These stages are as follows: Stage I- actin dependent movement on the cell surface. Stage II- Unidirectional movement toward the nucleus by use of microtubules. At this stage the virus is inside the cell and headed toward the lysosome. Internalization was found to occur at about 190 seconds. Stage III- Bidirectional movement within the cell and is dependent on microtubules as well. It was determined through experimentation that microtubule movement only occurs once internalization of the virus has
In general, there is a high mutation rate among RNA viruses, mostly due to the absence of a proofreader, as well as the RNA polymerase errors (2). The researchers above discovered the measles virus to have a significantly high, average mutation rate of 9x10 -5 per base per replication, with regards to the average mutation rate of all RNA viruses, between 10-3 and 10-6 per base per replication. This high error rate among the RNA viruses can lead to the ability of the virus to go un-detected by the immune system in an individual, which in turn can increase the pathogenicity of the virus (2), which can be seen in the
Since last century infectious diseases have been well controlled by immunisation, sanitation, and improved living environment in many countries (Plant & Watson 2008). However, due to the inaccessibility to the clean water and vaccination in some areas, these diseases continue to cause outbreak (Plant & Watson 2008; Moser, Reiss & Schwartz 2015). Infectious diseases may present similar symptoms but distinct patterns. They could have same or different mechanism of transmission, prevention thus are based on their modes of transmission. This essay will be comparing and contrasting varicella-zoster and measles, discussing their similar and pathognomonic signs and symptoms, incidence within Australia and worldwide, transmission and management of spread in healthcare and community settings.
Gene therapy is a method used by doctors that ‘uses genes as medicine’. It repairs faulty or damaged gene copies by transferring a therapeutic or working gene into specific parts of faulty gene copy. This means that gene therapy can be used to replace a faulty gene or to introduce a new gene whose function is to modify the clinical course of a condition or to cure a problem in the gene (Refer to image 2). Image 1 shows how gene therapy is completed using an adenovirus vector while image 2 explains the method of gene therapy and shows how cells are removed, altered and injected back into the patient. Gene therapy has potential to treat and cure many medical conditions such as various types of cancer, degenerative diseases and viral infections such as AIDS. Research into gene therapy still needs to be done before this approach to the treatment of certain conditions will realise its full potential. Trials are being conducted in the United States and Europe and a modest number initiated in other countries, including Australia. The majority of these trials are focussing on treating acquired conditions such as cancer (European Society of Gene & Cell therapy, 2011).
The Rotavirus has a 3 layered viral capsid. The outer layer contains the VP4 and VP7 protein. The middle layer contains the VP6 protein and the inner layer contains the VP2 proteins. The different groups of Rotavirus are distinguished based on their VP6 gene. The VP6 gene contains channels which gives the virus the wheel with spikes appearanc...
Current research methods of transfection, delivering foreign DNA into cells, have capitalized on using non-viral vectors because of the recent advantages researchers have been able to exploit. The process of transfecting cells runs into a number of problems by way of the cell’s own defense mechanisms. Vectors must be able to not only enter the cell past the cell’s membrane but also must be able to make its way into the cell’s nucleus to access the targeted genetic material. The problem with traditional transfection methods is that they are not able to enter the cell in high efficiency without triggering an immune response. This, coupled with the inability for prolonged gene expression in vivo even once transfected, results in a very expensive and ineffective method for introducing a foreign plasmid into the cell. In the past viral vectors had been used with a degree of success in vitro, but because they lack a high degree transfection efficiency and duration of gene expression using them for transfection could not produce substantial practical applications. Another problem is that these laboratory-engineered viruses had low success rates in vivo due to activating an immune response. New techniques are being discovered by modifying non-viral vectors in novel ways, producing increasingly effective methods for transporting DNA into cells with the hope of clinical application and advancing gene therapy.
The Latin name for measles is rubeola. The pathogen which causes the disease is a paramyxovirus, which is one of a group of RNA (ribonucleic acid) viruses. Measles is a respiratory disease caused by a virus, and also comes out in a rash. The virus enters the body via the respiratory system, and grows in the cells at the back of the throat and in the cells that line the lungs, from there it then enters the blood stream and circulates the body.
Measles Measles is a highly contagious disease. It is caused by an RNA virus that changes constantly. Measles symptoms usually include a bad cough, sneezing, runny nose, red eyes, sensitivity to light, and a very high fever. Red patches with white grain like centers appear along the gum line in the mouth two to four days after the first symptoms show. These patches are called Koplik spots because Henry Koplick first noticed them in 1896.
The first time a child is infected with a specific antigen like measles virus, the immune system produces antibodies designed to fight it. usually the immune system can’t work fast enough to prevent the antigen from causing disease, so the child still gets sick. But the immune system remembers that antigen. If it ever enters the body again, even after many years, the immune system can produce antibodies fast enough to keep it from causing disease a second time. This protection is called
The causative agent of rabies is the rabies virus, which has helical symmetry with infectious particles that are cylindrical in shape (Williamson, 2010). The cylindrical shape of the rabies virus gives it a striated appearance, and are surrounded by bullet-shaped envelopes. The rabies genome encodes five proteins: nucleoprotein (N), phosphoprotein (P), matrix protein (M), glycoprotein (G) and polymerase (L). The arrangement of these proteins and the RNA genome determine the structure of the rabies virus. (“The Rabies Virus”,
Rubella also commonly referred to as “German Measles” was previously believed to be a variation of measles until 1814 when it was first correctly indicated as a separate disease in German medical literature. Although the the rubella rash presents similar to the rash associated with measles, rubella is less severe and infectious. Rubella is distinguished by a red rash that first presents on the face and spreads to the trunk, arms, and legs and disappears in the same progression. The rash looks similar to many other viral rashes and must be confirmed by blood tests for the presence of rubella antibodies.