Virology
TWiV 384: Agent 003, a view to a fish kill
By Vincent Racaniello
Mass die-offs of tilapia by a novel orthomyxo-like virus, Ian Lipkin's editorial on the movie Vaxxed, and new vaccines to prevent dengue virus infections, including a human challenge model, are topics of episode #384 of the science show This Week in Virology. With guests Ian Lipkin and Nischay Mishra from the Center ...
Structure of Zika virus
By Vincent Racaniello
Six months after Zika virus became a household word, we now know the three-dimensional structure of the virus particle. And it looks like very much like other flaviviruses, such as West Nile and dengue viruses. In the old days, solving a virus structure was a big deal. A virus is, after ...
TWiV 383: A zillion Zika papers and a Brazilian
By Vincent Racaniello
Esper Kallas and the Merry TWiXters analyze the latest data on Zika virus and microcephaly in Brazil, and discuss publications on a mouse model for disease, infection of a fetus, mosquito vector competence, and the cryo-EM structure of the virus particle. All on episode #383 of the science show This Week ...
A minimal cell operating system
By Vincent Racaniello
If the DNA sequence of a cell is like the operating system of a computer, then the smallest cellular OS has just been written. Called Syn3.0, it encodes everything needed to make a viable, autonomously replicating cell. Mycoplasma is a genus of bacteria that are the smallest known free-living organisms. They also have the ...
TWiV 382: Everyone’s a little bit viral
By Vincent Racaniello
On episode #382 of the science show This Week in Virology, Nels Elde and Ed Chuong join the TWiV team to talk about their observation that regulation of the human interferon response depends on regulatory sequences that were co-opted millions of years ago from endogenous retroviruses. You can find TWiV #382 at ...