Viruses: Strategy and Tactics

Undergraduate catalogue

Viruses are unique parasites of living cells and may be the most abundant, highest evolved life forms on the planet. The general strategies encoded by all known viral genomes are discussed using selected viruses as examples. A part of the course is dedicated to the molecular biology (the tactics) inherent in these strategies. Another part introduces the biology of engagement of viruses with host defenses, what happens when viral infection leads to disease, vaccines and antiviral drugs, and the evolution of infectious agents and emergence of new viruses. Prerequisite: MOL 214 or permission of instructor.