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So far, the coronaviruses don't seem to establish latency in the same way that HPV does. And the chickenpox virus, VZV, is actually also a herpesvirus, along wi

So far, the coronaviruses don't seem to establish latency in the same way that HPV does. And the chickenpox virus, VZV, is actually also a herpesvirus, along with the Epstein Barr virus and CMV (you might know them as mono), and all those viruses share the characteristics of having latent forms that persist and can re-emerge. While we need to keep our eyes open with SARS-COV-2, especially on cases of potential re-emergence of the virus, it doesn't currently have the type of biology that would make latent infections/these sorts of outcomes a major concern.

azernik 6y ago
Indeed, the long-term effects I've seen researchers express more concern over are simpler. The disease causes quite a lot of damage to the lungs and circulatory system, and messes with brain oxygen levels. Not all of that damage is easily repaired by the body.
Gibbon1 6y ago
Little I've gleaned, HPV is a DNA virus. Those can easily become latent. Where coronaviruses are RNA viruses which don't appear too. A couple of conronavirurs cause mild colds they don't appear to stick around. So you would assume SARS-COV2 to behave the same way. Also the flu is a segmented RNA virus. The RNA is composed of segments. Which allows it to mutate by shuffling those segments with other strains. Including zoonotic strains. Coronaviruses have a single RNA strand and so don't shuffle.
- vikramkr 6y ago
  It's not necessarily an rna vs dna thing. HIV is an rna virus and notoriously goes latent.
  - est31 6y ago
    You are right in that HIV is an RNA virus and achieves latency, but it doesn't attain latency in its RNA form, but from the RNA being converted to DNA and then incorporated into the host cell's chromosomal DNA (in DNA form). It then sticks around for the duration of the cell's life and any of its descendants. That's why HIV is called a retrovirus, because it creates DNA from RNA during its life cycle. RNA is chemically less stable than DNA so the latter is more suited for viruses with long genomes as well as viruses which want to go latent. Not an expert. Would be curious if there are viruses that are latent while being in RNA form. Anyways, Coronaviruses are no retroviruses and their entire lifecycle is in RNA form, so there is no danger of them becoming latent from what I could gather.
    - vikramkr 6y ago
      Hep C in its chronic form isn't exactly "latent" in the way that a lentivirus or a herpesvirus can be, but it's the closest thing I can think of in terms of an RNA virus that replicates with RNA dependent RNA polymerase that has something resembling a "latent" form. It still replicates and has turnover due to the low stability of RNA as you mentioned, but it stays asymptomatic for decades in this infection course. I"m sure a virologist might be able to chime in with a better example, maybe a nonhuman one? There's so much variation in biology it'd almost be surprising if some RNA virus somewhere hadn't figured out some weird way to stabilize an RNA episome somehow https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hepatitis_C#Chronic_infection https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hepatitis_C#Chronic_infection https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hepatitis_C_virus#Replication https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hepatitis_C_virus#Replication

azernik 6y ago

Indeed, the long-term effects I've seen researchers express more concern over are simpler. The disease causes quite a lot of damage to the lungs and circulatory system, and messes with brain oxygen levels. Not all of that damage is easily repaired by the body.

Gibbon1 6y ago

Little I've gleaned, HPV is a DNA virus. Those can easily become latent. Where coronaviruses are RNA viruses which don't appear too. A couple of conronavirurs cause mild colds they don't appear to stick around. So you would assume SARS-COV2 to behave the same way. Also the flu is a segmented RNA virus. The RNA is composed of segments. Which allows it to mutate by shuffling those segments with other strains. Including zoonotic strains. Coronaviruses have a single RNA strand and so don't shuffle.

vikramkr 6y ago
It's not necessarily an rna vs dna thing. HIV is an rna virus and notoriously goes latent.
- est31 6y ago
  You are right in that HIV is an RNA virus and achieves latency, but it doesn't attain latency in its RNA form, but from the RNA being converted to DNA and then incorporated into the host cell's chromosomal DNA (in DNA form). It then sticks around for the duration of the cell's life and any of its descendants. That's why HIV is called a retrovirus, because it creates DNA from RNA during its life cycle. RNA is chemically less stable than DNA so the latter is more suited for viruses with long genomes as well as viruses which want to go latent. Not an expert. Would be curious if there are viruses that are latent while being in RNA form. Anyways, Coronaviruses are no retroviruses and their entire lifecycle is in RNA form, so there is no danger of them becoming latent from what I could gather.
  - vikramkr 6y ago
    Hep C in its chronic form isn't exactly "latent" in the way that a lentivirus or a herpesvirus can be, but it's the closest thing I can think of in terms of an RNA virus that replicates with RNA dependent RNA polymerase that has something resembling a "latent" form. It still replicates and has turnover due to the low stability of RNA as you mentioned, but it stays asymptomatic for decades in this infection course. I"m sure a virologist might be able to chime in with a better example, maybe a nonhuman one? There's so much variation in biology it'd almost be surprising if some RNA virus somewhere hadn't figured out some weird way to stabilize an RNA episome somehow https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hepatitis_C#Chronic_infection https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hepatitis_C#Chronic_infection https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hepatitis_C_virus#Replication https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hepatitis_C_virus#Replication