by Gertrud U. Rey Herpes simplex viruses establish lifelong persistent infection in sensory neurons of infected individuals, a phenomenon called latency. Latent viral genomes are “dormant” but can sporadically reactivate and begin replicating in a phase called lytic replication, which is often accompanied by shedding of virus particles and the appearance of painful lesions. There …
There aren’t enough human organs to meet the needs for transplantation, so we have turned to pigs. Unfortunately pig cells contain porcine endogenous retroviruses, PERVS, which could infect the transplant recipient, leading to tumor formation. But why worry? Just use CRISPR to purge the PERVs. The genomes of many species on Earth are littered with endogenous …
The TWiVsters describe a new animal model for MERS coronavirus-induced acute respiratory distress syndrome, produced by CRISPR/Cas9 editing of the mouse gene encoding an ortholog of the virus receptor. You can find TWiV #418 at microbe.tv/twiv, or listen below. [powerpress url=”http://traffic.libsyn.com/twiv/TWiV418.mp3″] Click arrow to play Download TWiV 418 (63 MB .mp3, 104 min) Subscribe (free): iTunes, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV!
On episode #365 of the science show This Week in Virology, Vincent, Alan, and Kathy trace the feud over genome editing, a new virus discovered in human blood, and the origins of hepatitis A virus. You can find TWiV #365 at www.microbe.tv/twiv.
