A virus attaches to a specific receptor site on the host cell membrane through attachment proteins in the capsid or via glycoproteins embedded in the viral envelope. The specificity of this interaction determines the host—and the cells within the host—that can be infected by a particular virus.
What term refers to the tissue or cell specificity of a virus?
Viral tropism can be defined by the ability of different viral strains or isolates to infect different cell types or tissues and to induce syncytia formation and/or acute or chronic infectious virus production as a result of infection.
How is a virus specific for a particular host cell?
If a host cell does not provide the enzymes necessary for viral replication, viral genes supply the information to direct synthesis of the missing proteins. Retroviruses, such as HIV, have an RNA genome that must be reverse transcribed to make DNA, which then is inserted into the host’s DNA.
What is the term that refers to the spectrum of host cells that a virus can infect?
A virus’ host range is the range of cell types and host species a virus is able to infect.
Which of the following is the term for an animal virus that has intergrated its DNA into the DNA of a host cell?
Retroviruses are a type of virus that use a special enzyme called reverse transcriptase to translate its genetic information into DNA. That DNA can then integrate into the host cell’s DNA. Once integrated, the virus can use the host cell’s components to make additional viral particles.
A complete virus particle, known as a virion, consists of nucleic acid surrounded by a protective coat of protein called a capsid. These are formed from identical protein subunits called capsomeres. Viruses can have a lipid “envelope” derived from the host cell membrane.