On episode #363 of the science show This Week in Virology, The TWiVers reveal influenza virus replication in the ferret mammary gland and spread to a nursing infant, and selection of transmissible influenza viruses in the soft palate. You can find TWiV #363 at www.microbe.tv/twiv.
During breastfeeding, mothers provide the infant with nutrients, beneficial bacteria, and immune protection. Fluids from the infant may also enter the mammary gland through retrograde flux of the nipple. Studies in a ferret model reveal that influenza virus replicates in the mammary gland, is shed in breast milk and transmitted to the infant. Virus may …
On episode #362 of the science show This Week in Virology, the virus virtuosos, with their usual verve, illuminate a new method to identify all the viral nucleic acids in a sample, and regulation of viral gene expression by codon usage. You can find TWiV #362 at www.microbe.tv/twiv.
The high mutation rate of RNA viruses enables them to evolve in the face of different selection pressures, such as entering a new host or countering host defenses. It has always been thought that the sources of such mutations are the enzymes that copy viral RNA genomes: they make random errors which they cannot correct. Now …
A huge host contribution to virus mutation rates Read More »
On episode #361 of the science show This Week in Virology, the TWiVsters discuss Frederick Novy’s return from retirement to recover a lost rat virus, and evidence for persistence of Ebolavirus in semen. You can find TWiV #361 at www.microbe.tv/twiv.
It is well known that virus populations display phenomenal diversity. Virus populations are dynamic distributions of nonidentical but related members called a quasispecies. This diversity is restricted in single cells, but is restored within two infectious cycles. Single cells infected with vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) were isolated using a glass microcapillary, and incubated overnight to allow completion …
