What viruses are capable of?

[ronthepon]

Some microbe 'tumefaciens' infects plants, and it is used extensively for genetically altering broad leaved plants.

I'm not sure if it's a virus or a bacterium, but it injects a 'ti-plasmid', also called T-DNA, the part which is replaced with whatever gene we want the plants to have.

[Zwirko]

Viruses, particularly retrovirsues and their non-viral relatives, may play major roles in evolutionary processes ... they can transfer whole genes or groups of genes (or their regulatory elements) from one organism to another. In this light, their "bad side" would be some kind of unfortunate side-effect. Maybe we would not be here if it were not for these semi-living critters?

[Michaelangelica]

From another THread

http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-P81pQ...Q--?cq=1&p=110

Joshua Lederberg: In Tune With The Enemy

Jun 7, 2003 Dov, in biologicalEvolution forum.

Two quoted SUPERB paras (The Scientist,Vol 17,Issue 11,20. Jun 3,2003) from "Getting in Tune With the Enemy", by J Lederberg.

(A) " Today, we are carrying around 500 different integrated retroviruses in our own genome. After millions of years of evolution, the ancient viruses now perform indispensable defense functions for the host. The microbes that co-inhabit our bodies show considerable self-restraint by moderating the virulence of disease, especially in well-established relationships with animal hosts. Systemic pathogens such as staphylococci and streptococci, that long ago invaded us and now live within our bodies, rarely secrete extreme toxins. In consequence, probably a third of us are walking around as healthy carriers of these bugs."

(B) " Multitudes of bacteria and viruses occupy our skin, our mucous membranes and our intestinal tracts, and we must learn to live with them in a "truce" rather than victory. Understanding this cohabitation of genomes within the human body--what I call the microbiome--is central to understanding the dynamics of health and disease.

THE ENEMY SHOULD HAVE WON:... From an evolutionary point of view, microbes are extremely successful. They can grow and evolve in cycles of 20 minutes or less. A community of a billion cells can be replaced overnight from a single seed. Tens of billions of cells can be cultured in a single small test tube.

[hallenrm]

Here's some news on this front, South Korean scientists have succeeded in developing a new genetically altered virus which is highly efficient in targeting and killing virus cells,

Here's the link to the news story in Nature

http://www.nature.com/cgt/journal/v1.../7700769a.html

[Michaelangelica]

Wasn't there a movie about this??

Killer tomatoes attack human diseases - health - 29 June 2006 - New Scientist

Killer tomatoes attack human diseases

GENETICALLY modified tomatoes containing edible vaccine are to be used to challenge two of the world's most lethal viruses.

The aim is to create affordable vaccines for HIV and the hepatitis B virus (HBV) that could be easily grown and processed in the countries where they are most needed.
So far, none of the 90 or so potential vaccines against HIV have proved successful and, though a vaccine already exists for HBV, it is too expensive to be used by poorer countries.

Rurik Salyaev at the Siberian Institute of Plant Physiology and Biochemistry in Irkutsk, Russia, and his colleagues used the soil bacterium Agrobacterium tumefaciens to shuttle a synthetic combination of HIV and HBV DNA fragments into tomato plants.
These include fragments of genes for various HIV proteins and the gene for an HBV protein called HBV surface antigen

.

[LJP07]

Originally Posted by hallenrm

Can we one day find that a particular virus can help us live longer? Or a virus that makes people sharp, intelligent, innovative or intutive?

Well considering that they lysis and infiltrate cells or may remain in a state of dormacy, it would be extremely difficult to find such a thing with characteristics you mentioned, and personally I can't see them finding it because I don't think such a thing practically exists, hopefully I'm proved wrong because your above statement would be fantastic to make global use of.

[Michaelangelica]

Originally Posted by Prolu2007

Well . . .hopefully I'm proved wrong because your above statement would be fantastic to make global use of.

mmm yes
Is this a link?

New Australian research has shown that breastfeeding mothers give added protection to their children who are fully breastfed.

Part of the doctorial thesis by Dani-Louise Bryan of the Paediatrics and Child Health Department of Flinders University in Adelaide, found that breastfeeding mothers exposed to pathogens their babies caught, produce antibodies in their breast milk to help fight the virus. This increases protection against respiratory illness, according to the recent Australian study.

The study showed that although the breastfeeding mothers were not ill or showing symptoms, there was a feedback response when their babies were suffering from a virus. This response was strong enough that the breastmilk being produced increased by four - five fold of the total white blood cells in the milk compared to the milk of mothers whose infants were not sick.

and

Breastfeeding also may enhance brain development. Some studies suggest that children who were breastfed may score higher on tests of cognitive ability than children who were fed formula (1).

Quick Reference: Breastfeeding

[LJP07]

Well, that's a natural process when Prolactin is produced by the Pituitary Gland in respons to the babies needs. Of course, firstly, the baby sucks Colostrum, which is very nutritious and contains many antibodies for the baby. Then the milk flows.

The mother naturally fights off against virus using their Killer-T Cells and B- Lymphocytes, however, this immunity is already encapsulated within the mother thus her breatsmilk will conform to it. This passes onto the baby and is extremely good for the babay in it's first few years of development.

But like I said, that's mainly a process which occurs on the mother that naturally may pass onto the baby. I would always encourage mothers to breastfeed due to it's enormous benefits.

As regards human virus protection, I wouldn't say this is a suitable example.

[gribbon]

I don't think anyone's mentioned that Viruses can also be used to fight of bacterial infections...

[Michaelangelica]

Originally Posted by Prolu2007

Well considering that they lysis and infiltrate cells or may remain in a state of dormacy, it would be extremely difficult to find such a thing with characteristics you mentioned, and personally I can't see them finding it because I don't think such a thing practically exists, hopefully I'm proved wrong because your above statement would be fantastic to make global use of.

"Sirtuan" genes such as SIR2 regulates aging.(There are SIR1- 7)
When extra copies of the SIR2 gene are inserted into Yeast cells they live 30% longer.
If you delete the SIR2 gene, the cells age prematurely.
This insertion/deletion is most likely done with virusus(?)

These SIR genes are very ancient and common to us and many 'lower' life forms.
"Resveratrol" can increase the lifespan of yeast cells by 70%.
It may stimulate the SIR2 pathway.
Source:
Cosmos01 July 2005