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Retroviruses

A retrovirus is a certain type of RNA virus that characteristically invades the body’s cells. When it does this, it also produces more RNA viruses. Among the more recognizable retroviruses are the AIDS virus as well as many cancer causing viruses. A Retrovirus belongs to the Retroviridae family.

A retrovirus is considered as a level 3 pathogen and its primary characteristic is that it uses a process called reverse transcriptase, an RNA dependent DNA polymerase or enzyme. Through reverse transcriptase, the retrovirus synthesizes a copy of DNA from its own RNA, using it as the template for the synthesis. The viral DNA will then be integrated into a host sell chromosome. When this happens it becomes known as a provirus. When a provirus is formed, one of two things are likely to happen. The viral DNA can remain dormant, but it gets replicated along with the host cell whenever the latter replicates. The other path is that the virus begins the process of transcription wherein it starts to produce many new viruses that would infect the nearby cells. Finally, a retrovirus can start converting a host cell into a tumor cell, which would cause the out of control division of cells – the beginnings of cancer.

Web Resources On Retroviruses

Diagram of a Retrovirus
Retroviridae

Book Resources On Retroviruses

Human Retrovirus Protocols: Virology And Molecular Biology by Tuofu Zhu
Virus Hunting: AIDS, Cancer, And the Human Retrovirus by Robert C. Gallo

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