Got Scabs?
Hannah Rosenberg and Michael Kessler
All About Viruses
Viruses contain enzymes, DNA or RNA, and have a protein coat called a capsid. Some more advanced viruses also have lipid membranes called envelopes.
What they do to cells and reproduction:
-viruses attach to the cell
-they inject the DNA or RNA, which takes over the cell
-cell begins to create virus parts, which make up the viruses
-viruses break free and host cell is killed (cell lysis)
Size:
-Viruses are measured in nanometers (10-50)
-they cannot be seen without an electron microscope
Viruses are not living:
They have no metabolism, cannot reproduce on their own, cannot move, have no respiration, do not eat, and do not contain cellular structures.
Lytic Cycle:
-fast track infection
-quickly eliminated by immune system
Lysogenic Cycle:
-long term infection
-virus remains dormant in cells for long periods of time and is reproduced with the cell
Smallpox- variola major and variola minor
-spread through contact with bodily fluid, face to face contact within six feet of an infected person, or contact with a contaminated object
Symptoms:
-muscle pain
-rashes, scars, scabs, bumps
-death or eventual blindness
There are no treatments, and the virus is often fatal.
Smallpox has been eradicated, so there is no longer any risk of contracting it.