Virus Introduction of Virus: Martinus Beijerinck Discovered The Tobacco Mosaic Virus (TMV) From The
Virus Introduction of Virus: Martinus Beijerinck Discovered The Tobacco Mosaic Virus (TMV) From The
Introduction of Virus
The word virus has come from the Latin virus referring to poison and other
noxious substances, first used in English in 1392. In ancient period any
pathogenic poisonous substances are called as virus.
Definition
According to MERRIAM WEBSTER DICTIONARY, virus is an
extremely small living thing that causes a disease and that spreads from
one person or animal to another.
Viruses are very small, submicroscopic, infectious particles of protein
and nucleic acid that produce significant and infectious diseases in plants
and animals. Virus can multiply within specific living hosts and exist as
no living substance outside of any biological entity.
American virologist, Wendell Stanly in 1935 isolated any crystallized TMV from
the infested leaves of tobacco. For this contribution he was awarded the Novel
price in Chemistry in 1946. English scientist F.C Bawden and N.W Pirie in 1937
have proved that viruses are chemically nucleic acid and protein components. In
1901 Walter reed first discovered the virus of yellow fever disease in human.
Robart Gallo and Luc Montagnier in 1984 independently discovered the virus
HIV that causes AIDS. In 1989 Harvey J. Alter discovered the hepatitis C virus.
From the beginning about 5,000 virus heave been described in details, although are
millions of different types.
Types of virus
SIZE OF VIRUS
The proteins and nucleic acid of viruses determine their size and shape. The
nucleic acid and proteins of each class of viruses assemble themselves into a
structure called a nucleoprotein. Some viruses have more than one layer
of protein surrounding the nucleic acid; still others have a lipoprotein membrane
(called an envelope), derived from the membrane of the host cell, that surrounds
the nucleoprotein core. Penetrating the membrane are additional proteins that
determine the specificity of the virus to host cells. The protein and nucleic
acid constituents have properties unique for each class of virus; when assembled,
they determine the size and shape of the virus for that specific class. The genomes
of Mimi viruses and Pandora viruses, which are some of the largest known viruses,
range from 1 to 2.5 Mb (1 Mb = 1,000,000 base pairs of DNA).
Most viruses vary in diameter from 20 nano-metres (nm; 0.0000008 inch) to 250–
400 nm; the largest, however, measure about 500 nm in diameter and are about
700–1,000 nm in length. Only the largest and most complex viruses can be seen
under the light microscope at the highest resolution.
General characteristics
A large number of viruses are now known. They exhibit diversity of from and
infect a number of organisms. Despite diversity of from and structure, they
wrapped up in an important characteristics common to all types of viruses
Viruses from unique bridge between living and non living things. Nobel
laureate A.lwoff (1953) identified viruses as virus and defined them nor a living
substance neither a non living substance but in between them as individual
existence. According to SALLE (1974) the virus are nothing but as chemicals in
between the living cells.
Virus Habit
Viruses are found in almost every ecosystem on earth and are the most abundant
type of biological entity. There are several viruses that have an animal or plant
reserviour from where they affect humans.