Virus Replication

Viruses are intracellular obligate parasites which means that they cannot replicate or express
their genes without the help of a living cell. A single virus particle (virion) is in and of itself
essentially inert. It lacks needed components that cells have to reproduce. When a virus
infects a cell, it marshals the cell's ribosomes, enzymes and much of the cellular machinery to
replicate. Unlike what we have seen in cellular replication processes such as mitosis and
meiosis, viral replication produces many progeny, that when complete, leave the host cell to
infect other cells in the organism.
Viruses may contain double-stranded DNA, double-stranded RNA, single-stranded DNA or
single-stranded RNA. The type of genetic material found in a particular virus depends on the
nature and function of the specific virus. The exact nature of what happens after a host is
infected varies depending on the nature of the virus. The process for double-stranded DNA,
single-stranded DNA, double-stranded RNA and single-stranded RNA viral replication will
differ. For example, double-stranded DNA viruses typically must enter the host cell's nucleus
before they can replicate. Single-stranded RNA viruses however, replicate mainly in the host
cell's cytoplasm.
Once a virus infects its host and the viral progeny components are produced by the host's
cellular machinery, the assembly of the viral capsid is a non-enzymatic process. It is usually
spontaneous. Viruses typically can only infect a limited number of hosts (also known as host
range). The "lock and key" mechanism is the most common explanation for this range.
Certain proteins on the virus particle must fit certain receptor sites on the particular host's cell
surface.
How Viruses Infect Cells
The basic process of viral infection and virus replication occurs in 6 main steps.
1. Adsorption - virus binds to the host cell.
2. Penetration - virus injects its genome into host cell.
3. Viral Genome Replication - viral genome replicates using the host's cellular
machinery.
4. Assembly - viral components and enzymes are produced and begin to assemble.
5. Maturation - viral components assemble and viruses fully develop.
6. Release - newly produced viruses are expelled from the host cell.
Viruses may infect any type of cell including animal cells, plant cells and bacterial cells. To
view an example of the process of viral infection and virus replication, see Virus Replication:
Bacteriophage. You will discover how a bacteriophage, a virus that infects bacteria, replicates
after infecting a bacterial cell.
Life cycle of a basic virus
There are a few basic steps that all infecting viruses follow and these are called the lytic
cycle. These include:
1. A virus particle attaches to a host cell. This is called the process of adsorption
2. The particle injects its DNA or RNA into the host cell called entry.
3. The invading DNA or RNA takes over the cell and recruits the hosts enzymes
4. The cellular enzymes start making new virus particles called replication
5. The particles of the virus created by the cell come together to form new viruses. This is
called assembly
6. The newly formed viruses kill the cell so that they may break free and search for a new host
cell. This is called release.
7. Lytic Cycle
The lytic cycle is a replication process carried out by a bacteriophage within a
bacterial cell. The following article is a discussion of the steps to help you understand
the process of reproduction in a virus.
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The viral reproduction takes place in two cycles; the lysogenic and lytic cycle. The
latter is thought to be the main method of viral replication, as it results in destruction
of the infected bacterial cell. This cycle leads to cell lysis, hence the name. In this
article, we shall learn its steps in short.

What is Lytic Cycle

The definition states that the virulent phages are those that can multiply only on
bacterial cells. At the end of their life cycle, they cause cell lysis that kills the host
bacteria. The viruses that infect bacteria are called bacteriophages. The most common
example of a bacteriophage is the phage T4 and the lambda phage. These phages can
both infect Escherichia coli (E. coli). The phages are obligatory intracellular parasites
like other viruses and need a host cell to reproduce. The T4 phage replicates by the
lytic cycle that eventually causes host cell death and the lambda phage multiplies
using lysogenic cycle that does not cause host cell death. There are five stages of the
cycle, that are explained in the following paragraphs using T4 phage as an example.

The Steps

The bacteriophage reproduces using lytic cycle as its method of reproduction. The
five steps include attachment, penetration, biosynthesis, assembly and release. Let us
learn about these steps in detail.

Attachment: The T4 phage has a complex structure with several tail fibers. These tail
fibers help in attachment of the virus to the cell wall of E. coli at the complementary
receptor cells. Once attached, weak chemical bonds are formed between the receptor
sites and the attachment that helps the virus adhere to the host cell.
Penetration: Once the T4 phage is attached to the bacterial cell, it injects its double
stranded DNA (or single stranded RNA depending on the type of phage) into the E.
coli cell. The T4 phage releases enzymes that weaken the cell wall. This helps in
injection of the genetic material of the virus by pressing its sheath against the cell.
The empty capsid or virus body remains in the bacterial cell. Some types of phages
enter the host cell intact and dissolve their capsid inside the host. This process is
known as uncoating.
Biosynthesis: The host protein synthesis stops when the host DNA is degraded by the
infecting virus. The viral DNA begins to interfere with the transcription and
translation of host DNA. The T4 phage uses the host nucleotides to replicate its own
DNA. It also uses the host ribosomes, enzymes and amino acids to synthesize it own
enzymes and proteins. During the biosynthesis, there are not complete phages inside
the host cell. Thus, this stage is known as the eclipse period.
Assembly: There are many viral components made in the host cell. These components
are assembled into complete viruses. The proteins coded for phage DNA in case of T4
phage, act as enzymes that are used for construction of new phages. The host
metabolism is used for assembly of the phages that results in a bacterial cell full of
new viruses. Slowly the capsids are assembled and the DNA is packaged within the
head. Finally, the tail fibers are attached to the complex viral structure.
Release: The viruses are released from the host cell after assembly of the new viral
particle. The phage produces an enzyme that breaks down the bacterial cell wall from
within and allows entry of fluid. The cell becomes full of new phage cells (about 100
- 200 phages) and fluid that cause cell lysis, thus completing the cycle. The phages
released are free to infect more host cells and continue with the steps.

The burst time is calculated from the time the phage is attached to the cell till the lysis
of the host cell and release of new phages. The total burst time is about 20 to 40
minutes. The number of viruses that are released from the cell at the burst time is
called burst size. The burst size can vary from 50 to 200 phages.