Rabies virus: Difference between revisions

From Citizendium
Jump to navigation Jump to search
imported>Sharon Uliss
imported>Sharon Uliss
Line 26: Line 26:


==Virus structure==
==Virus structure==
 
The virus has a bullet-like shape; one end is rounded while the other is planar or concave. The virus’s lipoprotein envelope contains about 400 spikes on its surface, which are composed of glycoprotein (G). Within the envelope lies the membrane or matrix (M) protein layer, which may be invaginated at the planar end. The Glycoprotein spikes do not cover the planar end. The virion’s core consists of helically arranged ribonucleoprotein, which consists of protein and RNA.


==Ecology==
==Ecology==

Revision as of 21:37, 22 April 2009

All unapproved Citizendium articles may contain errors of fact, bias, grammar etc. A version of an article is unapproved unless it is marked as citable with a dedicated green template at the top of the page, as in this version of the 'Biology' article. Citable articles are intended to be of reasonably high quality. The participants in the Citizendium project make no representations about the reliability of Citizendium articles or, generally, their suitability for any purpose.

Attention niels epting.png
Attention niels epting.png
This article is currently being developed as part of an Eduzendium student project in the framework of a course entitled Microbiology 201 at Queens College, CUNY. The course homepage can be found at CZ:Biol 201: General Microbiology.
For the course duration, the article is closed to outside editing. Of course you can always leave comments on the discussion page. The anticipated date of course completion is May 21, 2009. One month after that date at the latest, this notice shall be removed.
Besides, many other Citizendium articles welcome your collaboration!



Rabies Virus
Scientific classification

Description and significance

The Rabies virus is a member of the order, Mononegavirales, which encompasses viruses containing non-segmented, negative-stranded RNA genomes. The term originates from the Latin, “rabies,” which means “madness.” This may have been derived from the Sanskrit word, rabhas, “to do violence.” The virus has a distinct “bullet” shape, placing it in the Rhabdoviridae family, which includes at least three genera of viruses that infect animals, such as Lyssavirus, Ephemerovirus, and Vesiculovirus. The rabies virus belongs to the Lyssavirus genus (Greek word, lyssa, is derived from “lud” or “violent.”) which also includes the Aravan virus, Australian bat Lyssavirus, Duvenhage virus, European bat virus 1 and 2, Lagos bat virus, and Mokola virus. Lyssaviruses have helical symmetry and are about 180 nm in length, with a cross-sectional diameter of 75 nm. The most prevalent strain of rabies is Rabies Virus (RABV; genotype 1), which is the type that infects both bats in the Americas and terrestrial animals throughout the world. Rabies is a zoonotic disease, meaning it is transmitted from animals to humans. The virus infects domestic and wild animals, and is transmitted to humans through close contact with infected saliva, usually through bites or scratches. This viral, neuroinvasive disease causes acute encephalitis (brain inflammation) in warm-blooded animals. The virus also enters the salivary glands in high concentrations, leading to further transmission. Once the signs and symptoms of the virus arise, there is no treatment and the disease is usually fatal. The disease is prevalent in nearly every continent of the world, with over 55,000 human deaths a year, 95% of which occur in Africa and Asia.

Genome structure

Rabies is an RNA virus. The genome encodes 5 proteins: nucleoprotein (N), phosphoprotein (P), matrix protein (M), glycoprotein (G), and polymerase (L). The genome is non-segmented, linear antisense RNA. RNA-dependent RNA transcriptase and some structural proteins are present in the nucleocapsid.

Virus structure

The virus has a bullet-like shape; one end is rounded while the other is planar or concave. The virus’s lipoprotein envelope contains about 400 spikes on its surface, which are composed of glycoprotein (G). Within the envelope lies the membrane or matrix (M) protein layer, which may be invaginated at the planar end. The Glycoprotein spikes do not cover the planar end. The virion’s core consists of helically arranged ribonucleoprotein, which consists of protein and RNA.

Ecology

Pathology

Current Research

References