Hiv

HIV

HIV or human immunodeficiency virus is a single-stranded RNA virus that belongs to the family Retroviridae . The virus can result in a condition called acquired immuno-deficiency syndrome (AIDS , which is the characterized by the failure of the immune system to fight infections and foreign substances in the body . HIV infection is usually transmitted (AIDSmeds .com , 2008

Once HIV enters the body , it first invades its host , which is the T-cell or CD4 cell , through glycoprotein adsorption on the surface of the cell . After the virus has , its viral envelope then fuses

br with the cell membrane and its capsid is injected into the cell . In addition , upon attachment of the virus , the RNA and several enzymes which include integrase , ribonuclease , protease , and reverse transcriptase , are also released into the T-cell (AIDSInfonet , 2006

The viral capsid , after entering the T-cell , the reverse transcriptase enzyme then releases the single stranded RNA from the viral proteins and then converts it into DNA , which is a process called reverse transcription . The reverse transcriptase then creates a complementary DNA strand and forms a double-stranded viral DNA intermediate (vDNA which is transported to the nucleus . Moreover , the viral DNA is integrated into genome of the host cell by integrase enzyme (AIDSInfoNET , 2006

Finally , the at host cell 's plasma membrane , the Env polyprotein passes through the endoplasmic reticulum and into the Golgi complex where it is cleved by the protease enzyme , producing individual and functional HIV enzymes and proteins , which is a process called budding . These components , once matured , assemble to produce an HIV virion capable of invading another host cell (The Body , 2003

References

AIDSMeds .com (2008 . The HIV Life Cycle . Retrieved January 26 , 2008 from http /www .aidsmeds .com /articles /hiv_life_cycle_4705 .shtml

AIDSInfonet (2006 . HIV Life Cycle . Retrieved January 26 , 2008 from http /www .gay .com /images /health /hiv /400 .pdf

The Body (2003 . The HIV Life Cycle . Retrieved January 26 , 2008 from http /www .thebody .com /content /art14193 .html

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