The "birth" of the virus: real-time shooting
American researchers managed to see the assembly of a viral particle for the first time using the microscopy technique they developed. The virus, the "birth" of which was observed in real time, was the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), according to the website of New York Rockefeller University, where the study was conducted.
Visualization of the process of assembling a viral particle on the surface of an infected cell has become possible thanks to a new technique called total internal reflection microscopy. Unlike conventional microscopy, in which light passes through the cell, displaying it all, the light rays of the new microscope fall on the surface of the cell at an acute angle, reflecting off it. This allows you to see only the processes taking place on the outer cell membrane.
A research team led by Nolwenn Jouvenet, HIV expert Paul Bieniasz and biophysicist Sanford Simon focused on one of these processes – the assembly of HIV (white dots in the image) on the surface of an infected lymphocyte from individual molecules synthesized inside the cell. The first-ever observation of the "birth" of the virus answers many questions, both in virology and biology in general, and can help in the development of new methods of treating HIV infection.
During the observation, a previously unknown duration of the assembly process was also determined – 5-6 minutes.
According to the authors of the study, the scope of the new technique covers the observation of a variety of processes occurring on the cell surface, which opens up new opportunities for biological research.