Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
Marine viruses are defined by their habitat as viruses that are found in marine environments, that is, in the saltwater of seas or oceans or the brackish water of coastal estuaries. Viruses are small infectious agents that can only replicate inside the living cells of a host organism , because they need the replication machinery of the host to ...
The origins of viruses in the evolutionary history of life are unclear: some may have evolved from plasmids—pieces of DNA that can move between cells—while others may have evolved from bacteria. In evolution, viruses are an important means of horizontal gene transfer , which increases genetic diversity . [ 32 ]
3. The phage DNA then moves through the cell to the host's DNA. 4. The phage DNA integrates itself into the host cell's DNA, creating prophage. 5. The prophage then remains dormant until the host cell divides. 6. After the host cell has duplicated, the phage DNA in the daughter cells activate, and the phage DNA begins to express itself.
To enter the cells, proteins on the surface of the virus interact with proteins of the cell. Attachment, or adsorption, occurs between the viral particle and the host cell membrane. A hole forms in the cell membrane, then the virus particle or its genetic contents are released into the host cell, where replication of the viral genome may commence.
The viral DNA is then replicated inside the nucleus by the host cell's machinery. Virus particles are assembled in the cytoplasm, usually occupying a space near the inner face of the nucleus. Due to the extremely small size of the algae cells, the average burst size was found to be 25 virus particles per cell. [45]
The Megaviridae virus can be found infecting acanthamoeba or other protozoan clades. Once the virus infects the host, the replication cycle takes place in the cytoplasm. Within the genome, DNA repair enzymes can be found. These are used when the DNA is harmed such as when it is exposed to ionizing radiation or UV light. [14]
The virus's nucleic acid uses the host cell's metabolic machinery to make large amounts of viral components. [2] In DNA viruses, the DNA transcribes itself into messenger RNA (mRNA) molecules that are then used to direct the cell's ribosomes. One of the first polypeptides to be translated destroys the host's DNA.
The viral eukaryogenesis hypothesis points to the cell cycle of eukaryotes, particularly sex and meiosis, as evidence. [6] Little is known about the origins of DNA or reproduction in prokaryotic or eukaryotic cells. It is thus possible that viruses were involved in the creation of Earth's first cells. [8]