Viruses have a defined "life cycle" as do any other type of
organisms; however, given that they are obligate intracellular parasites, this cycle
revolves around:
getting into a host cell
replicating there, and
getting out again.
For eighteen years now I have taught this cycle under the heading
"Entrance, Entertainment, and Exit*",
as this is the best mnemonic I know to remind one of the process. Other courses tend to label these steps as (for example)
Assembly and Release of Virions
These pages link frequently to the University of Leicester Microbiology
Dept. Virology 335 course material, mirrored at
this site: use the "back" button on your browser to return from a link.
Copyright Ed Rybicki, August 1997, 1998; March 1999 (Unless otherwise stated)
* = from the Pink Floyd song "The Grand Vizier's Garden Party" (Roger Waters), on the album "Ummagumma". Which also contains the delightful "Several Species of Small Furry Animal Gathered Together in a Cave and Grooving With a Pict", which title is only a little shorter than the unforgettable Hoagy Carmichaels' "I'm a Cranky Old Yank in my Clanky Old Tank, on the Streets of Yokohama With My Honolulu Mama, Doing Those Beat-O, Street-O, Flat on my Seat-O, Hirohito Blues"...but I digress.
Click here for Pink Floyd
midi files to brighten your browsing.
