4 ms·
As i understand it, your body is made of various different types of cells. Now, a virus has to be able to mate with these cells to break through and then change
by imajes 17y ago
As i understand it, your body is made of various different types of cells. Now, a virus has to be able to mate with these cells to break through and then change the RNA of the cell so it can replicate- remember, viruses are sub-cell agents and need to cause mutations of good cells to replicate.
So given your body is made of different types of cells, viruses only have the keys to certain cells - where there's enough in common in their RNA to mate. This is kind of what's meant by the ports the author describes- H1N1 has enough similar encoding to the cells in your throat, nose and sinuses to mate and cause mutations.
- ars 17y agoI don't believe this is correct. First a virus does not cause a cell to mutate. It's more akin to handing the cell a new set of work orders, but it doesn't mutate the cell's DNA. Second, I think the "port" is not that the RNA is similar, but rather the virus has a protein key on it's surface that physically allows it to enter the cell. In the micro world things move by atomic forces. In this case the virus has a protein on it's surface that is the same shape as a protein on the surface of the cell. The same shape means the electrical charges line up, and the virus is drawn toward the cell by electrostatic forces. If the charge pattern does not match up, the virus will not be drawn toward the cell. Remember the virus has no ability to move.
- arebop 17y agoNot all viruses cause mutations, but some do: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Retrovirus http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Retrovirus