A 53-year-old woman comes to the physicianv because of a 2-day history of fever, chills, headache, and cough. She also reports malaise and generalized muscle aches. She works as a teacher at a local high school. She has a history of intermittent asthma, for which she takes albuterol as needed. She is worried about possibly becoming ill and cannot afford to miss work. Her temperature is 38.5°C (101.3°F), pulse is 58/min, and respirations are 12/min. Lung sounds are clear to auscultation. A nasopharyngeal swab is obtained. Naked viral particles are seen, and purified RNA molecules are extracted from these particles. Once introduced into human cells, the purified RNA molecules induce viral protein synthesis and viral genome replication. Which of the following is the most likely cause of this patient's symptoms?

Question

A 53-year-old woman comes to the physicianv because of a 2-day history of fever, chills, headache, and cough. She also reports malaise and generalized muscle aches. She works as a teacher at a local high school. She has a history of intermittent asthma, for which she takes albuterol as needed. She is worried about possibly becoming ill and cannot afford to miss work. Her temperature is 38.5°C (101.3°F), pulse is 58/min, and respirations are 12/min. Lung sounds are clear to auscultation.  A nasopharyngeal swab is obtained.  Naked viral particles are seen, and purified RNA molecules are extracted from these particles.  Once introduced into human cells, the purified RNA molecules induce viral protein synthesis and viral genome replication.  Which of the following is the most likely cause of this patient's symptoms?

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Eductional Objective: For a purified RNA molecule to induce viral protein synthesis in a host cell, it must be able to act directly as mRNA using the host's intracellular machinery for translation.  Therefore, in general, purified single-stranded positive-sense RNA can be infectious; single-stranded negative sense or double-stranded RNA is not.

A 53-Year-Old Woman Comes to the Physicianv Because of a 2-Day