Epidemic Parotitis, also known as mumps, is an aggressive, worldwide virus. Once this virus is obtained, the parotid glands are inflamed. There are many ways in which this virus is spread, the symptoms and signs of infection, and how the virus is treated. Mumps is spread in many ways, from coughing and sneezing to any exposure to infected bodily fluids. However on a molecular level, both a virus and a host cell contain genetic material such as DNA and RNA. However the viruses contain a Capsid and are nonliving, with cells generally containing a cell membrane and being living. A virus needs host cells to not only survive but to multiply. Although is needs a specific host cell that corresponds to the virus. The cycle Mumps uses is the lysogenic
Some viruses also have an outer bag of lipo-protein called an envelope. After a virus attaches to a living cell, it either enters the cell to release the genetic information, or, the virus injects the information through the cells outer lining. Thus changing the cells natural functions and forcing the cell to spend its energy to create copies of the virus. The cell will go on making copies of the virus until the cell is used up and dies. The virus then leaves the dead cell and invades a nearby cell and the process starts all over. There are five types of human herpes virus: Varicella zoster which causes chickenpox, Epstein Barr virus which causes infectious mononucleosis, cytomegalovirus which can cause cytomegalic inclusion disease in infants, and herpes simplex viruses 1 and 2.
It is the type of disease you contract as a child, fight off, and develop an immunity for in adulthood. An example of this is chicken pox. Most Americans have suffered, or will suffer, from chicken pox as a child. One becomes sick for a little while, recovers, and never suffers from the disease again. Now with the differences between epidemic and endemic clarified, I will move on to the origins of disease.
Measles is virus with a single-stranded RNA and two membranes: a fusion protein that infuses into the host cell membrane and the hemagglutinin protein that absorbs the virus into the cells. The primary site for invasion is in the epithelium of the nares. Measles is highly contagious and very infectious because it is easily transmitted when an infected person coughs or sneezes. The virus can stay in the air or on surfaces for up to two hours and infect many people who inhale the infectious agent or touch a surface, then be introduced to a new host through touch to
Poliomyelitis (polio) is a disease that attacks the nervous tissue in the spinal cord and the brain stem resulting in paralysis (Document One). Polio is caused by the poliovirus, but it is unknown how this virus is acquired. The virus enters the digestive tract and stays in the intestines for up to eight weeks, and then attacks the lymphatic system, the blood stream and eventually travels to the brain and spine (Document Four). Once it is infected in one’s body, the disease is highly contagious and can be spread through contact of saliva, food, germs, or feces (Document Two). “The poliovirus causes most of its infections in the summer and fall. At one time, summer epidemics of polio were common and greatly feared” (Document Four). This may
Measles is a very contagious disease that is caused by a virus in the paramyxovirus family (World Health Organization, 2016). Measles, a virus only found in humans, can be passed through the air or by direct contact. It can be spread by sneezing, coughing, close personal contact or direct contact with infected nasal or throat secretions. The virus enters the body via mucous membranes and then it is carried throughout the body. Usually when someone has been exposed to measles, the first sign will be a high fever beginning about a week and a half after the exposure and
Smallpox was once one of the most severe infectious diseases that was endemic throughout the world for most of the recorded history. It is caused by variola virus (a DNA virus and a member of the Poxviridae family), and characterized by three phases: incubation, prodrome and rash. This disease killed and disfigured innumerable millions of people globally.
At Penn, the undergraduate program that I would apply to would be the College of Arts and Sciences, which houses just about all of my known academic interest: Physics, Philosophy, Anthropology, and the Performing Arts. I developed a slight interest in Physics in middle which really solidified during my Advanced Physics class junior year. I found the class to be engaging, complex, and something that I was able to grasp very intuitively. The class inspired me to experiment around and research with concepts both in and outside the classroom. I found myself investigation more in our hands-on experiments in class and exploring other concepts, such as the Magnus effect and String theory, which we do not cover in the course.
Viruses are microscopic particles that invade and take over both eukaryotic and prokaryotic cells. They consist of two structures, which are the nucleic acid and capsid. The nucleic acid contains all genetic material in the form of DNA or RNA, and is enclosed in the capsid, which is the protein coating that helps the virus attach to and penetrate the host cell. In some cases, certain viruses have a membrane surrounding the capsid, called an envelope. This structure allows viruses to become more stealthy and protected. There are two cycles in which a virus can go into: lytic and lysogenic. The lytic cycle consists of the virus attaching to a cell, injecting its DNA, and creating more viruses, which proceed to destroy the host. On the other hand, the lysogenic cycle includes the virus attaching to the cell, injecting its DNA, which combines with the cell’s DNA in order for it to become provirus. Then, the provirus DNA may eventually switch to the lytic cycle and destroy the host.
A communicable disease chain is the mechanism by which an infective agent or pathogen is transmitted. The chain requires an infective agent, a source of infection, a mode of transmission and a host. An example of an infective agent could be bacteria, a virus, fungus, protozoan or helminth. The source of infective agents can be transmission from host to host, an infected human or animal, insects, soil or livestock. The mode of transmission is how the infective agent is carried from host to host. Transmission can be by air, ingestion or physical contact. To complete a life cycle or to replicate, the infective agent requires a host.
When we hear the word virus, we usually think of something that makes us sick. A virus is an ultramicroscopic infectious organism that, having no independent metabolic activity, can replicate only within a cell of another host organism. A virus consists of a core of nucleic acid, either RNA or DNA, surrounded by a coating of antigenic protein and sometimes a lipid layer surrounds it as well. The viral genome provides the genetic code for replication, and the host cell provides the necessary energy and raw materials. To fight viruses, we use vaccines. While some may infect a broad range, other viruses can only infect certain kinds of cells. Vaccines are made of inactive, dead or weakened virus cells or protein antigens that can no longer infect
Ever since Colorado first decriminalized cannabis for recreational use in 2012, the federal government has failed to intervene in the state’s marijuana policy. Now the states of Nebraska, Kansas, and Oklahoma have decided to take action into their owns and start a class action lawsuit against the state of Colorado. The states have decided to sue Colorado because marijuana that is legal in Colorado is being brought across state borders where marijuana is not legal causing the states to increase the policing of marijuana within their states. This paper will delve into the pros and cons of the lawsuit and explain why the state of Nebraska, as well as the other states, should just decriminalize marijuana in their
Born in 1904, Theodor Seuss Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss, is perhaps one of the most beloved children’s authors of the twentieth century. Although he is most famous as an author of children’s books, Geisel was also a political cartoonist, advertisement designer, and film director. He used the power of imagination to produce unforgettable children’s books and helped solve the problem of illiteracy among America’s children. By using his experiences in life as a foundation for most of his books, Theodor Geisel was able to shape the character of many of his readers, as well as teach children subliminal messages through a unique writing style that incorporated various elements and techniques. Through a few of his books,
The protective capsid helps the virus escape detection and destruction during the invasion of the host. When the virus reaches the target cell, biochemical reactions between the capsid and cell wall allow the virus to latch on and inject its genome into the cell’s interior. Once inside, the viral genetic material insinuates itself into the host’s DNA or RNA. In an efficient feat of natural bioengineering, the host cell’s genetic machinery now does the rest of the work for the virus. The cell, which had already been making copies of its own genome, now also replicates that of the virus. Coded within the viral material is the blueprint for making more copies of the viral genome. Further instructions command the production of capsids and directions for assembly of new viruses. After the host cell becomes engorged with viruses, it explodes, sending the new
When they enter the body, they use their capsules as protection from white blood cells, cells that are meant to destroy them. After avoiding the white blood cells and constantly reproducing, the bacteria finally break apart and release endotoxins. The toxins are meant to destroy tissue that is located nearby. Viruses are incapable of copying this process. Since they are not alive, they are required to have a living host in order to reproduce. Upon entering our body, they use proteins on their outside coat to attach themselves to the membranes of human cells. Next, they inject their enzymes and genetic codes into the host cell. The enzymes force the host cell to make copies of the viruses. Once enough copies are made, the copies leave the cell to find more host cells (Microbe World paragraphs 1-5). Fungi can reproduce asexually, such as by making spores, or sexually. Once inside the human body, they break down tissue (Encyclopedia Britannica Online paragraph 1).
Measles is caused by a virus known as Paramyxovirus which is highly contagious. About 85% of people that are exposed to the virus are infected by it and about 95% of those people infected by the virus will develop an illness called measles(Carson-DeWitt