fusion

Retroviruses turned egg-layers into live-bearers

The protein syncytin, which is essential for formation of the placenta, originally came to the genome of our ancestors, and those of other mammals, via a retrovirus infection. Placental structures have also developed in non-mammalian vertebrates. The Mabuya lizard (pictured: image credit), which emerged 25 million years ago, has a placenta very much like those …

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Measles in the brain: Fusion gone awry

The entry of enveloped viruses into cells begins when the membrane that surrounds these virus particles fuse with a cell membrane. The process of virus-cell fusion must be tightly regulated, to make sure it happens in the right cells. The fusion activity of measles viruses isolated from the brains of AIDS patients is not properly regulated, …

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TWiV 243: Live from ASV at Penn State

On this episode of the science show This Week in Virology, which was recorded before a large enthusiastic audience at the annual meeting of the American Society for Virology, Vincent, Rich, and Kathy speak with Rebecca and Christiane about their work on metapneumoviruses and noroviruses. You can find TWiV #243 at www.microbe.tv/twiv.

An antiviral for enveloped viruses

Broad spectrum antibiotics are available that act against a wide range of bacteria, including both gram-positive and gram-negative species. In contrast, our antiviral arsenal is exceedingly specific. Nearly all the known antivirals block infection with one or two different viruses. The discovery of a compound that blocks infection with many different enveloped viruses may change …

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