Viral Evolution Quotes

As mechanistic biologists, we are hoping that by understanding how the virus works at the molecular level, we will be able to predict with more accuracy how it will evolve.

An inefficient virus kills its host. A clever virus stays with it.

Different viral species contain nucleic acids that differ not only in length and nucleotide sequence but in many unexpected ways as well.

The more cases of Ebola infection we have, the more chances there are for the virus to mutate in a particular way that adapts it well to living in humans, replicating in humans, and perhaps transmitting from human to human.

Whereas HIV only in recent decades became infectious for humans, high risk papillomavirus types have in all likelihood been with us for millions of years, accompanying the human race since the early days of our evolution.

The nature of a protective immune response to HIV is still unclear. Because in a very, very unique manner, unlike virtually any other microbe with which we're familiar, the HIV virus has evolved in a way that the immune system finds it very difficult, if not impossible, to deal with the virus.

The unique nature about the influenza virus is its great potential for changes, for mutation.

Every advance in knowledge and technique is matched by a new kind of death, a new strain. Death adapts, like a viral agent.

The variety of genes on the planet in viruses exceeds, or is likely to exceed, that in all of the rest of life combined.

The swine flu is evolution, isn't it? In a way, it's an evolution of flu.

As life forms, viruses are just inherently interesting. It's the microworld - this universe of life too small for us to see - but it's profoundly complicated, and immensely powerful. Ebola is like a beautiful and frightening predator. There is a wonder in the operations of nature that can't be denied, even when we're the losers.

Every time somebody new gets the Ebola virus, it mutates.

But what has been pretty good about the coronaviruses in general is they keep their structural pieces very similar. What do I mean by that? There's certain - the outer coat, the envelope, and the inside part of the virus has stayed very constant.

We are watching very closely to see how the disease associated with bird flu, when it hits humans, is evolving.

The problem with Ebola is that it makes mistakes while it copies itself. The mistakes are actually good for Ebola because they help Ebola change, and as a result of this, as it jumps from one human body to the next, roughly half the time, it's got a mutation.

The single biggest threat to man's continued dominance on the planet is the virus.

It turns out that viruses evolve from each other, like everything else. So if you look at the evolutionary tree of viruses, you can find parts of their genome that haven't changed over evolutionary time. You can recognize what may be a new virus by identifying this little piece of their genome that hasn't changed and is represented on the chip.