What type of virus is the HIV virus?

HIV belongs to a class of viruses known as retroviruses. Retroviruses use RNA to encode their genetic information rather than DNA, as human cells do.

What kind of virus is HIV and how does it cause immunodeficiency?

White blood cells are an important part of the immune system. HIV infects and destroys certain white blood cells called CD4+ cells. If too many CD4+ cells are destroyed, the body can no longer defend itself against infection. The last stage of HIV infection is AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome).

How does HIV infect human cells?

When HIV infects a cell, it first attaches to and fuses with the host cell. Then the virus uses the host cell’s machinery to convert the viral RNA into DNA and replicate itself. The new copies of HIV then leave the host cell and move on to infect other cells.

How does the human immunodeficiency virus HIV cause the body to be unable to fight infection quizlet?

HIV kills immune system cells that help the body fight infections and diseases. The immune system becomes weak when it cannot make enough CD4 cells to fight HIV.

What is one human infecting virus that has a DNA based genome?

Most of these viral genes come from retroviruses, RNA viruses that insert DNA copies of their own genes into our genomes when they infect cells. HHV-6 is unique because it is the only known human DNA herpesvirus that integrates into the human genome and can be routinely inherited.

What is the most common danger related to the destruction of CD4 T cells?

Loss of CD4+ T cells and systemic immune activation are the hallmarks of HIV infection.

How do viruses affect our DNA?

When a virus encounters a host cell, a chain reaction of molecular events is set in motion: The virus attaches itself to the outer wall of the cell, enters inside, travels to the cell’s genome, merges with its genes and then tricks the host’s genome into making copies of itself.

How do viruses and cells interact?

Some viruses transport just their nucleic acid genomes into the cell while others deliver the entire virion. Once in the cell, virion proteins and genome interact with a variety of cell proteins, nucleic acids, and membranes. Productive replication requires synthesis of viral mRNAs, protein, and genomes.

What happens when CD4 cells are destroyed?

HIV destroys CD4 cells by using their replication machinery to create new copies of the virus. This ultimately causes the CD4 cells to swell and burst. When the virus has destroyed a certain number of CD4 cells and the CD4 count drops below 200, a person will have progressed to AIDS.

Do CD4 cells replicate?

When viruses reproduce it is called replication. HIV uses CD4 immune cells to replicate. And each infected CD4 cell produces hundreds of new copies of new HIV particles. The process is called the HIV lifecycle.

How do viruses infect other cells?

Viruses initially stick to cell membranes through interactions unrelated to fusion proteins. The virus surfs along the fluid surface of the cell and eventually the viral fusion proteins bind to receptor molecules on the cell membrane (4).

Why are most viruses highly specific to the cells they infect?

Viruses can infect only certain species of hosts and only certain cells within that host. The molecular basis for this specificity is that a particular surface molecule, known as the viral receptor, must be found on the host cell surface for the virus to attach.