Chapter 24

Viral Diseases and DNA Viruses

 

Contents

I.     Critical Thinking Questions
II.    Technical Terms
III.   Internet Sites to Search

I. Critical Thinking Questions
  

  • Explain what is a virus
  • Difference between viruses regarding nucleic acid content
  • Are there viruses that contain both types of nucleic acids?
  • Are DNA viruses single stranded?
  • Are DNA viruses double stranded? Any exceptions? Which one?
  • Are RNA viruses single stranded? Any exceptions? If so, which one?
  • Explain the relationship between a cell membrane and a virus spike
  • Where in the cell is a DNA virus ensembled?
  • Where in the cell is a RNA virus ensembled?
  • What types of tissues do viruses target? 
  • Explain what kind of infections virus produce
  • Are virus transmitted to humans via animals? Give examples.
  • List 6 viral diseases on humans
  • What is latency? 
  • Explain 3 different methods used in the identification of viruses
  • Do they activate oncogenes and produce cancer? 
  • In how many groups are DNA viruses classified?
  • What is a poxvirus?
  • What is smallpox?
  • What are the manifestation of smallpox on a human?
  • Is variola major a form of smallpox? If so, how many times more virulent than variola minor?
  • Is there a vaccine against smallpox virus?
  • Explain what is molluscum contagiosum 
  • Why herpesviruses are so persistent in humans?
  • Types of herpesviruses
  • Are herpesviruses large or small? Give sizes
  • How are herpesvirus deactivated?
  • Is herpes virus type II an STD?
  • Where does herpes virus II stay during latency?
  • Are infections recurrent?
  • Explain the type of lesions arising from Type 1 and 2, respectively
  • Explain what is ocular herpes
  • Medicines used to treat herpetic infections
  • What is herpetic whitlows and what kind of persones are at risk? 
  • Define varicella and its causative agent
  • What is the difference between shingles and herpes zoster?
  • Is varicella the same as chickenpox?
  • Does chickenpox affect chickens?
  • Explain what is shingles and where in the body it localizes 
  • Is CMV or cytomegaloviruses another group of herpesviruses?
  • Define mononucleosis
  • Why is it spread in college campuses?
  • How to avoid it? 
  • Define Epstein-Barr virus and what it causes
  • Who are more prone to get this virus?
  • What part of the human body is attacked by EBV?
  • What is the kissing disease? What is 'mono'? 
  • Explain what is Burkitt's Lymphoma?
  • Does it attack AIDS patients? If so, why? 
  • Explain what is human herpesvirus-6 and its implication in humans
  • Are these viruses carcinogenic? 
  • Draw the DNA configuration in hepatitis B virus
  • Is it a completely double-stranded virus? If not, why?
  • Difference between bilirubin and jaundice
  • List some properties of the hepatitis B virus
  • Where does it multiply?
  • Number of virions per ml of blood in an infected person
  • Can HBV be found in semen and in vaginal secretions?
  • Who are more at risk?
  • Are there vaccines against the hepatitis virus?
  • Can RNA viruses cause other forms of hepatitis? 
  • Explain what are Adenoviruses
  • Are adenoviruses oncogenic?
  • Who are more at risk of infection by adenoviruses?
  • Can interferon cure an adenovirus infection? 
  • List some diseases caused by papovaviruses
  • Explain what is HPV (human papillomaviruses)
  • What is condylomata acuminata? Is it a venereal disease (STD)?
  • How are the manifestions of this disease and how the disease is controlled?
  • Are lesions similar to cauliflower-like masses?
  • Where are these lesions usually localized?
  • Are genital warts the leading STD in USA? 
  • Why parvoviruses are unique?
  • What about their size? Are they small or large?
  • Which one is the most important parvovirus?
  • What disease does it cause?
  • Do these type of viruses also attack domestic animals? 
  • Given the ubiquity of most of the above viruses, what can health workers do to prevent transmission of infection to other patients and themselves? 
  • What specific host defenses do immunodeficient, cancer, and AIDS patients lack that make them so susceptible to the viral diseases in this chapter? 
  • Explain why a baby whose mother has genital herpes is not entirely safe even with a cesarian birth 
  • Describe several measures health care workers can take to avoid whitlows 
  • What mechanism might account for reactivation of these viruses by various traumatic events? 
  • Can you think of some reasons that herpes simplex and zoster viruses are carried primarily in the nerve trunks? 
  • Do you think the United States and Russia should completely destroy for all time the stocks of smallpox viruses they hold? Explain your position. 
  • Why is there a greater danger in using live attenuated DNA viruses for vaccines? 
  • Which DNA viruses have been linked to cancer? 
     

II. Technical Terms

  • acyclovir
  • adenovirus
  • BK virus
  • Burkitt's lymphoma
  • cauterization
  • chickenpox
  • coinfection
  • common warts
  • condylomata acuminata
  • cowpox
  • cytoplasm
  • double-stranded DNA
  • enveloped virus
  • Epstein-Barr virus
  • erythema contagiosum
  • fifth cranial nerve
  • freezing
  • ganglion
  • genital herpes
  • genital warts
  • gingivostomatitis
  • hepadnavirus
  • hepatitis B
  • herpesvirus
  • herpetic keratitis
  • jaundice
  • kissing disease
  • laser surgery
  • latency
  • lumbosacral spinal nerve trunk
  • monkeypox
  • mono
  • mononucleosis
  • mumps
  • naked virus
  • oncogenes
  • oncogenicity
  • papilloma
  • parvovirus
  • plantar warts
  • polyomaviruses
  • poxviruses
  • probe
  • recurrent attack
  • shingles
  • sickle-cell anemia
  • single-stranded DNA
  • smallpox
  • spike
  • strand
  • teratogenic
  • trigeminal nerve
  • vaccination
  • varicella
  • varicella-zoster virus
  • variola
  • virus
  • whitlow
  • yellow fever


III. Internet sites to search

  • Herpes viruses
  • Smallpox
  • Hepatitis B
  • Genital warts