You are a physician and you suspect your patient has a viral infection that has never been seen in humans. The infection is localized in the cells along the lining of the small intestine. The cells in this area are regularly sloughed off and replaced with new cells; that is, these cells are constantly dividing. When you isolate this new virus and incubate it in culture, you discover that it does not replicate well in cultures that have slowly dividing cells, but it does much more damage in cultures that have actively dividing cells. What do these findings suggest about this new virus?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The virus's preference for actively dividing cells suggests it integrates into the host cell's DNA to replicate, a characteristic of double-stranded DNA viruses. This integration process is more efficient in rapidly dividing cells, where the DNA is more accessible.

You Are a Physician and You Suspect Your Patient Has