Chapter 11 - Structure and Function of the Human Respiratory Syncytial Virus M2-1 Protein

摘要

RNA viruses can be divided into positive- and negative-sense groups based on the ability of their RNA genomes to act as messenger RNA (mRNA) for the production of proteins. In positive-sense RNA viruses, the genome can be translated directly, while in negative-sense RNA viruses, the input genome must undergo a copying event to produce coding sense mRNAs. The negative-sense RNA viruses (NSV) can be further divided into segmented (SNSV) and non-segmented negative-strand viruses (NSNSV), depending on whether the genome is a single chain of ribonucle-otides or whether it is segmented into two or more separate RNA molecules. The group of NSNSVs encompasses pathogens of humans, animals and plants, and notable examples include rabies virus, Nipah virus, Ebola virus (EBOV) and human respiratory syncytial virus (HRSV), many of which are without effective preventa-tive or therapeutic options to prevent disease (Palese et al. 1996; Tao and Ye 2010).