Skip to main content
  • Courses
  • Programs
  • Help
    Getting Started Discussion Forums Help Center & FAQ
Saylor Academy
    Close
    Toggle search input
  • Log in or Sign up
Courses
Programs
Help
Getting Started
Discussion Forums
Help Center & FAQ
  • BIO307: Microbiology (2018.01)
  • Announcements
  • Sections
  • Course Introduction
  • Unit 1: Microbes
  • Unit 2: Microbial Metabolism
  • Unit 3: Bacterial Growth, Reproduction, and Genetics
  • Unit 4: Microbial Characteristics and Identification
  • Unit 5: Bacteria and Human Disease
  • Unit 6: Fungi
  • Unit 7: Protozoa and Helminths
  • Unit 8: Viruses
  • Unit 9: Defense Against Microbes
  • Unit 10: Applied Microbiology
  • Final Exam
  • Resources
  • Activities
  • Forums
  • Quizzes
  • Home
  • My programs

BIO307: Microbiology (2018.01)

Competencies
  1. Home
  2. Courses
  3. (hidden)
  4. BIO307: Microbiology (2018.01)
  5. Sections
  6. Unit 8: Viruses

Learn new skills or earn credit towards a degree at your own pace with no deadlines, using free courses from Saylor Academy. We're committed to removing barriers to education and helping you build essential skills to advance your career goals. Start learning here, or check out our full course catalog.

Log in or Sign up to enroll in courses, track your progress, gain access to final exams, and get a free certificate of completion!

Sign up now
Back to course 'BIO307: Microbiology (2018.01)'
  • Unit 8: Viruses

    This unit will introduce you to viruses. Viruses are in the grey zone between life and inorganic matter. You have learned that the cell is the smallest unit of life, because it can sustain all life functions including reproduction on its own. Most viruses are smaller than cells. They do not feed or reproduce on their own; instead, they hijack their host's metabolism when they multiply. All viruses are comprised of a nucleic acid core surrounded by a protein coat. Viruses are all categorized into seven groups based on the type of nucleic acid they carry. Viruses, while tiny, have powerful effects on their hosts; they can even cause cancer, birth defects, and death.

    Completing this unit should take you approximately 21 hours.

    • Upon successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

      • describe how viruses are classified;
      • diagram the process of viral replication;
      • compare and contrast dsDNA, ssDNA, dsRNA, +ssRNA, and -ssRNA; and
      • describe examples of each type of the above viruses and the diseases that result.
    • 8.1: Virus Characteristics

      • Khan Academy: "Introduction to Viruses" Page

        Watch this lecture, which identifies the major characteristics of viruses.

      • University of South Carolina School of Medicine: Margaret Hunt's "Basic Virology: Definitions, Classification, Morphology and Chemistry" URL

        Read this overview of DNA and RNA viruses, which are either single or double stranded and can vary in size and morphology.

    • 8.2: Viral Replication Cycles

      • University of South Carolina School of Medicine: Margaret Hunt's "Basic Virology: Replication of Viruses" URL

        Read this chapter to learn about viral replication cycles.

    • 8.3: dsDNA Viruses

        • 8.3.1: Poxviruses

          • University of Pittsburgh: Peter H. Russell's "Poxviridae (Veterinary Virology)" URL

            Study these slides. Note that poxviruses cause most diseases with the word "pox" in their names. The major exception is chickenpox, which is caused by herpesvirus, our next topic.

        • 8.3.2: Herpesviruses, Adenoviruses, Papillomaviruses, and other Oncogenic Viruses

          • University of South Carolina School of Medicine: Richard C. Hunt's "Oncogenic Viruses" URL

            Read this chapter to learn about viruses that can cause cancer. Herpes viruses cause a variety of diseases, from genital herpes to mononucleosis to chickenpox. The human papillomavirus (HPV) has been associated with cervical cancer. A vaccination is now available for both females and males to prevent HPV infection. Take advantage of the PowerPoint lecture slides as you study.

      • 8.4: ssDNA Viruses

          • 8.4.1: Parvoviruses

            • University of South Carolina School of Medicine: Margaret Hunt and Richard Hunt's "Parvoviruses and Fifth Disease" URL

              Read this article to understand parvoviruses and their threat to our pets.

          • 8.4.2: Geminiviruses

            • Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics: "Geminiviridae" URL

              Read this article about the ssDNA viral family.

        • 8.5: dsRNA Viruses

            • 8.5.1: Arboviruses

              • University of South Carolina School of Medicine: Margaret Hunt's "Arboviruses" URL

                Read this article on Arboviruses, which include the mosquito-spread West Nile Virus and Reoviridae. Reoviridae causes the gastroenteritis illness known as "Rotavirus."

            • 8.5.2: Birnaviruses

              • Journal of General Virology: Joan Pous, Christophe Chevalier, et al.'s "Structure of Birnavirus-like Particles Determined by Combined Electron Cryomicroscopy and X-ray Crystallography" URL

                Read the first three paragraphs of the introduction to gain an understanding of birnaviruses.

          • 8.6: +ssRNA Viruses

              • 8.6.1: Coronaviruses

                • University of South Carolina School of Medicine: Richard Hunt's "Corona Viruses, Colds, and SARS" URL

                  Read this article to learn about Coronavirus and SARS. SARS, also known as severe acute respiratory syndrome, is caused by a type of coronavirus.

              • 8.6.2: Picornaviruses

                • University of South Carolina School of Medicine Richard Hunt's "Picornaviruses Part One: Enteroviruses and General Features of Picornaviruses" URL

                  Read this article to learn about Picornaviruses, which cause intestinal problems as well as the common cold.

                • University of South Carolina School of Medicine: Richard Hunt's "Picornaviruses Part Two: Rhinoviruses" URL

                  Read the article to learn about Rhinoviruses.

              • 8.6.3: Caliciviruses

                • University of South Carolina School of Medicine: N. Narayan and Helmut Albrecht's "Rotaviruses, Caliciviruses, Adenoviruses, Astroviruses, and Others" URL

                  Read the section titled "Caliciviruses".

            • 8.7: -ssRNA Viruses

                • 8.7.1: Orthomyxoviruses

                  • University of South Carolina School of Medicine: Margaret Hunt's "Influenza Virus (Orthomyxoviruses)" URL

                    Read this chapter to learn about different types of flu viruses. Orthomyxoviruses are more commonly known as the flu virus. There are many kinds of flu viruses, including H1N1. 

                • 8.7.2: Paramyxoviruses

                  • University of South Carolina School of Medicine: Margaret Hunt's "Measles (Rubeola) and Mumps" URL

                    Read this chapter, which discusses Paramyxoviruses.

                • 8.7.3: Rhabdoviruses

                  • University of South Carolina School of Medicine: Richard Hunt's "Rabies" URL

                    Read this chapter to further understand the dangers of rabies to animals and humans. One type of virus in the rhabdovirus family is called lyssavirus, which causes rabies. Rabies is infallibly lethal; if left untreated, it has a death rate of 100%.

                • 8.7.4: Filoviruses

                  • Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics: "Filoviridae" URL

                    Read this article to learn about Filoviruses and hemorrhagic fever. Filoviruses cause viral hemorrhagic fevers, a particularly destructive set of conditions that often leads to death. One such virus is the Ebolavirus, which causes Ebola.

              • 8.8: DNA and RNA Retroviruses

                  • 8.8.1: Hepadnaviruses

                    • University of South Carolina School of Medicine: Richard Hunt's "Hepatitis Viruses" URL

                      Read this chapter to learn about hepatitis. Retroviruses use intermediates to make copies of themselves. DNA retroviruses use RNA intermediates, while RNA viruses use DNA intermediates.

                  • 8.8.2: Lentiviruses

                    • University of South Carolina School of Medicine: Richard Hunt's "Human Immunodeficiency Virus and AIDS" URL

                      Read this article to learn about the HIV virus and AIDS. The most famous lentivirus is the human immunodeficiency virus, also known as HIV.

                    • The University of Arizona Biology Project: "Viruses Tutorial" URL

                      Read this page, and then click on the "Next" button on the bottom of the page. On the next page choose "What is alive?" This is a multiple-choice assessment. Choosing an option will bring you to a page that indicates whether you answered correctly or incorrectly and provides a short explanation. If you answer incorrectly, click on "try again" to repeat the question. If you answer correctly, click on the link to the next problem.

                    • Viral Disease Quiz

                      Complete this brief ungraded assessment.

                • 8.9: Antivirals

                  • University of South Carolina School of Medicine: Richard Hunt's "Anti-Viral Chemotherapy" URL

                    Read this chapter on anti-viral medications. Although the word "chemotherapy" is almost exclusively used in common language to refer to cancer treatment, it actually refers to the chemicals used in drug therapy for a variety of illnesses. Refer to Figure 1 on the attack mechanism of an enveloped virus as you study.

              Skip Recent activity
              Recent activity
              Activity since Tuesday, March 28, 2023, 8:15 PM
              Full report of recent activity...

              No recent activity

              Saylor Academy
              • About

              • Partners

              • Blog

              • Contact

              Saylor Academy

              © Saylor Academy 2010-2023 except as otherwise noted. Excluding course final exams, content authored by Saylor Academy is available under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license. Third-party materials are the copyright of their respective owners and shared under various licenses. See detailed licensing information.

              Saylor Academy®, Saylor.org®, and Harnessing Technology to Make Education Free® are trade names of the Constitution Foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization through which our educational activities are conducted.

              "CCBY"

              Sitemap | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy

              Data retention summary
              Get the mobile app
              Policies