Influenza Virus Poster Black
by Russell Kightley
Title
Influenza Virus Poster Black
Artist
Russell Kightley
Medium
Digital Art
Description
Image of an influenza virus particle, the cause of flu. These viruses are covered by spikes of Haemagglutinin (red projections) and Neuraminidase (the squarish yellow projections), hence the H and N names, such as H5N1. These spikes pass through the greenish viral envelope to dock with the underlying matrix (M) proteins shown in grey. Flu viruses have a segmented genome which can get jumbled up during replication (gene mixing). This allows different strains to easily form from existing types. Flu occurs in seasonal epidemics and periodically as major pandemics.
Influenza viruses have two kinds of spike, Haemagglutinin (HA, in red) and Neuraminidase (NA, in yellow). Different types of HA and NA are designated by numbers (e.g. H5N1). HA helps attach the virus to the host cell and NA is involved in releasing the virus from the cell. The viral envelope (bluish) is derived from the host cell plasma membrane when the virus buds from the cell. RNP (ribonucleoprotein, in yellow) consists of genetic information (as RNA) wrapped in protein. The genome is divided into eight segments which congregate when the virus assembles. If two or more types of influenza infect the same cell, segments can become jumbled together creating new strains.
Uploaded
August 19th, 2013
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Viewed 2,085 Times - Last Visitor from New York, NY on 03/24/2024 at 3:36 AM
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