Proteins on the outside of influenza A viruses are key to breaking through our bodies' mucus barrier
Katerina Conn/Science Photo Library
Before a virus can infect a cell, it often has to pass through the body's protective mucus layer to reach the cell. Understanding how evolution has optimized influenza A viruses for this daunting task could aid in the development of new antiviral drugs.
Even if influenza A viruses were dropped into mucus, natural diffusion would never transport the virus to cells fast enough to cause an infection, he says. Siddhanshu Agarwal at the University of California, Berkeley. Influenza A virus – the only influenza…
Source: www.newscientist.com
