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DOI: 10.22184/1993-8578.2021.14.2.102.106
Viruses are nature objects of tens or hundreds nanometers. They often consist of only two types of molecules: nucleic acid, DNA or RNA, and proteins. Sometimes lipids are added. Viruses cannot reproduce independently, like bacteria. Replication of viruses is carried out by the infected cell itself by producing many copies of nucleic acids and proteins. In this paper we will study in details various types of viruses with the help of an atomic force microscope to see their structural features that make them invulnerable, and learn whether one viral particle can cause a disease.
Viruses are nature objects of tens or hundreds nanometers. They often consist of only two types of molecules: nucleic acid, DNA or RNA, and proteins. Sometimes lipids are added. Viruses cannot reproduce independently, like bacteria. Replication of viruses is carried out by the infected cell itself by producing many copies of nucleic acids and proteins. In this paper we will study in details various types of viruses with the help of an atomic force microscope to see their structural features that make them invulnerable, and learn whether one viral particle can cause a disease.
Теги: atomic-force microscopy morphology of viruses viruses атомно-силовая микроскопия вирусы морфология вирусов
ATOMIC FORCE MICROSCOPY: STUDY OF VIRUSES
I.V.Yaminskiy1, 2, 3, 4, Doct. of Sci. (Physics and Mathematics), Prof. of Lomonosov Moscow State University, Physical and Chemical departments, Director of Advanced Technologies Center, Leading Sci. of INEOS RAS, A.I.Akhmetova1, 2, 3, Engineer of A.N.Belozersky Institute of Physico-Chemical Biology, Leading Specialist of Advanced Technologies Center and of Energy Efficient Technologies
Viruses are nature objects of tens or hundreds nanometers. They often consist of only two types of molecules: nucleic acid, DNA or RNA, and proteins. Sometimes lipids are added. Viruses cannot reproduce independently, like bacteria. Replication of viruses is carried out by the infected cell itself by producing many copies of nucleic acids and proteins. In this paper we will study in details various types of viruses with the help of an atomic force microscope to see their structural features that make them invulnerable, and learn whether one viral particle can cause a disease.
The tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) was the first virus discovered by Martin Beierink in 1898. Six years before that, in 1892, Dmitry Ivanovsky published an article on a non-bacterial pathogen of tobacco plants, he suggested that this is either poison or certain dwarf creatures that are not visible in the microscope. Nowadays this virus is a model object for many studies and one of the most studied viruses. TMV has a rod shape, a particle diameter of 18 nm, length – 300 microns. Virus image in the atomic force microscope is presented in Fig.1.
Usually viruses have a simple geometric shape – in most cases, it is an icosahedron or cylinder (rod).
Images of the virus of the poa semilatent virus, barley stripe mosaic, brome mosaic virus are presented in Fig.2.
The image of the Mengo virus is represented in Fig.3.
In order for the virus to infect the cell, it should undress, throw down the protein shell and expose the RNA molecule. It is possible to see how this happens in the laboratory using an atomic force microscope. Apply dimethyl sulfoxide on TMV, and we already see how RNA is released from the protein shell.
Figure 4 shows the image of a destroyed X virus of potatoes: here are the fragments of the shell, and viral RNA. By the way, the observed RNA height is just one nanometer. This was done by phosphorylation, replacement of the hydrogen atom in the shell protein for the residue of phosphoric acid. Such a process occurs in wildlife.
Bacteria also have viruses. These are bacteriophages. Interaction of a bacteriophage with Escherichia coli bacteria is visualized by an atomic force microscope in [3].
With the help of an atomic force microscope, it is possible not only to observe the shape of the viruses in three dimensions, but also to investigate mechanical and physico-chemical properties of viruses, rigidity, counteracting destruction, adhesive and frictional properties, a tendency to aggregation, the ability to crystallize.
If we press a cantilever on a particle of potato virus X with a different force, we can notice that the height of the virus changes (Fig.5). Now we can judge the rigidity of the virus and even understand at what applied force the virus is destroyed.
With the help of atomic force microscopy coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 was studied in air under chemical and thermal exposure which resulted in its destruction [5].
When a sick person sneezes and coughs, viral particles enter the surrounding air and can get into another person. A sick person with a strong cough or sneezing can throw hundreds of thousands of viral particles, with a fluid droplets of about 4 μm, containing the virus that can stay in air for several hours. This means an air-drop infection. Larger drops settle on the surface – floor, tables or other items. Therefore, when touching such surfaces a man can also be infected. Consequently, the use of masks and gloves is a reasonable protection measure against coronavirus.
How many viruses are required for a person to get infected? Under laboratory conditions on the cell culture, it is shown that it is enough even one virus. One virus gets into a cell, the cell reproduces new viruses they get into other cells and so on. What happens in real life? It looks like a game of roulette, only sometimes the outcome is fatal.
Who will win? Of course, a homo sapience. It turns out in nature that the virus does not completely kill all its carriers: be it bacteria, plants, animals or people. After all, if the carriers die, the virus dies completely as well. By the way, separation greatly impedes a spread of viruses, which is what lockdown, self-isolation, distance work, etc. do.
Does it happen that someone generally lives without viruses? It turns out yes. Scientists have not yet found a single virus in European Spruce.
Nowadays, viruses are used to combat viruses. Thus, a vaccine Sputnik V against coronavirus, created on the basis of modified adenoviruses, is working successfully. In the first and second vaccinations different adenoviruses are used.
Take care of yourself. Soon, on the YouTube channel, we will talk about the atomic force microscopy of viruses. One can know more about the basics of the atomic force microscopy on the channel now: https://youtu.be/rhigj5eylsg.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The research was carried out with the financial support of the Russian Foundation for Basic Research and the Royal Society of London No. 21-58-10005, the Russian Science Foundation, project No. 20-12-00389, and the Russian Foundation for Basic Research, project No. 20-32-90036. ■
Declaration of competing interest. The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
I.V.Yaminskiy1, 2, 3, 4, Doct. of Sci. (Physics and Mathematics), Prof. of Lomonosov Moscow State University, Physical and Chemical departments, Director of Advanced Technologies Center, Leading Sci. of INEOS RAS, A.I.Akhmetova1, 2, 3, Engineer of A.N.Belozersky Institute of Physico-Chemical Biology, Leading Specialist of Advanced Technologies Center and of Energy Efficient Technologies
Viruses are nature objects of tens or hundreds nanometers. They often consist of only two types of molecules: nucleic acid, DNA or RNA, and proteins. Sometimes lipids are added. Viruses cannot reproduce independently, like bacteria. Replication of viruses is carried out by the infected cell itself by producing many copies of nucleic acids and proteins. In this paper we will study in details various types of viruses with the help of an atomic force microscope to see their structural features that make them invulnerable, and learn whether one viral particle can cause a disease.
The tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) was the first virus discovered by Martin Beierink in 1898. Six years before that, in 1892, Dmitry Ivanovsky published an article on a non-bacterial pathogen of tobacco plants, he suggested that this is either poison or certain dwarf creatures that are not visible in the microscope. Nowadays this virus is a model object for many studies and one of the most studied viruses. TMV has a rod shape, a particle diameter of 18 nm, length – 300 microns. Virus image in the atomic force microscope is presented in Fig.1.
Usually viruses have a simple geometric shape – in most cases, it is an icosahedron or cylinder (rod).
Images of the virus of the poa semilatent virus, barley stripe mosaic, brome mosaic virus are presented in Fig.2.
The image of the Mengo virus is represented in Fig.3.
In order for the virus to infect the cell, it should undress, throw down the protein shell and expose the RNA molecule. It is possible to see how this happens in the laboratory using an atomic force microscope. Apply dimethyl sulfoxide on TMV, and we already see how RNA is released from the protein shell.
Figure 4 shows the image of a destroyed X virus of potatoes: here are the fragments of the shell, and viral RNA. By the way, the observed RNA height is just one nanometer. This was done by phosphorylation, replacement of the hydrogen atom in the shell protein for the residue of phosphoric acid. Such a process occurs in wildlife.
Bacteria also have viruses. These are bacteriophages. Interaction of a bacteriophage with Escherichia coli bacteria is visualized by an atomic force microscope in [3].
With the help of an atomic force microscope, it is possible not only to observe the shape of the viruses in three dimensions, but also to investigate mechanical and physico-chemical properties of viruses, rigidity, counteracting destruction, adhesive and frictional properties, a tendency to aggregation, the ability to crystallize.
If we press a cantilever on a particle of potato virus X with a different force, we can notice that the height of the virus changes (Fig.5). Now we can judge the rigidity of the virus and even understand at what applied force the virus is destroyed.
With the help of atomic force microscopy coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 was studied in air under chemical and thermal exposure which resulted in its destruction [5].
When a sick person sneezes and coughs, viral particles enter the surrounding air and can get into another person. A sick person with a strong cough or sneezing can throw hundreds of thousands of viral particles, with a fluid droplets of about 4 μm, containing the virus that can stay in air for several hours. This means an air-drop infection. Larger drops settle on the surface – floor, tables or other items. Therefore, when touching such surfaces a man can also be infected. Consequently, the use of masks and gloves is a reasonable protection measure against coronavirus.
How many viruses are required for a person to get infected? Under laboratory conditions on the cell culture, it is shown that it is enough even one virus. One virus gets into a cell, the cell reproduces new viruses they get into other cells and so on. What happens in real life? It looks like a game of roulette, only sometimes the outcome is fatal.
Who will win? Of course, a homo sapience. It turns out in nature that the virus does not completely kill all its carriers: be it bacteria, plants, animals or people. After all, if the carriers die, the virus dies completely as well. By the way, separation greatly impedes a spread of viruses, which is what lockdown, self-isolation, distance work, etc. do.
Does it happen that someone generally lives without viruses? It turns out yes. Scientists have not yet found a single virus in European Spruce.
Nowadays, viruses are used to combat viruses. Thus, a vaccine Sputnik V against coronavirus, created on the basis of modified adenoviruses, is working successfully. In the first and second vaccinations different adenoviruses are used.
Take care of yourself. Soon, on the YouTube channel, we will talk about the atomic force microscopy of viruses. One can know more about the basics of the atomic force microscopy on the channel now: https://youtu.be/rhigj5eylsg.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The research was carried out with the financial support of the Russian Foundation for Basic Research and the Royal Society of London No. 21-58-10005, the Russian Science Foundation, project No. 20-12-00389, and the Russian Foundation for Basic Research, project No. 20-32-90036. ■
Declaration of competing interest. The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
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