Isn't it Virionic?

When a virus infects a human cell, it’s the start of an audacious hijack. The plucky particles 'trick' cells into helping with their replication – here researchers see just how far certain viruses take these liberties. Using cryo-electron microscopy (bottom row) scans assembled and rendered in 3D (above), the team watch particles – virions’ – of poliovirus (red). In an ironic twist they repurpose the cell’s autophagy machinery – which usually helps to destroy viruses. The new virion particles load into a phagophore vesicle (blue) – a bubble-like container that usually transports material to destruction. Instead, vesicles like these burst out of the cell, spreading infection. Polio is an enterovirus, like many common colds, but far more serious. While cases of polio have risen recently, anti-viral medicine that targets autophagy might help to bolster vaccination programmes.

Written by John Ankers

John Ankers

Writer

A former researcher in systems biology, John is now an online biology tutor and professional coach supporting the wellbeing of scientists and NHS professionals. He's writing, too, of course.

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• Image adapted from work by Selma Dahmane and colleagues
• Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
• Image originally published with a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
• Published in Nature Communications, October 2022