The Endocrine Research Project, 574 Sims Rd., Santa Cruz, CA 95060, USA.
Med Hypotheses. 2010 Apr;74(4):688-91. doi: 10.1016/j.mehy.2009.10.046. Epub 2009 Nov 30.
Human viral carriers are important agents in the periodic resurgence of many pathogens. Instillation of virus in human carriers explains several of the unusual epidemiological features of viral epidemics, such as where viruses linger between epidemics and how epidemics can arise without an apparent source. By inactivating itself, a virus can easily reside in a host for months or years without being noticed by the immune system, enabling the virus to be dispersed inconspicuously in the future and into new regions. When this silent activity of human carriers is appreciated, it is easier to understand the dynamics of viral epidemics, such as the explosive appearance of influenza epidemics. During viral illnesses, virus in infected cells is put into a latent state by regulatory sequences delivered by particles produced by other virus-infected cells. These regulatory particles are similar to the virus's virion but contain specific subsets of the viral genome and cannot replicate in cells that are not infected by the complete viral genome. Regulatory particles have previously been referred to as defective interfering particles, noninfective viruses, inactive viruses, incomplete viruses, satellite viruses, and defective viruses. There are still many unanswered questions regarding viral carrier creation and the role human carriers play in the pathology and epidemiology of viral diseases. Some of these questions are presented and discussed in relation to regulatory particles, possible investigations and how carrier status may affect the health of the carrier. Viral regulatory particles limit the extent of viral infections and shift the active infection to a latent infection. Just as multicellular creatures use hormones as chemical messengers to coordinate cellular functions, viruses utilize regulatory particles to coordinate viral modes among infected cells within a host. Many viruses depend on these particles for their continued existence. If we wish to comprehend and effectively treat viral infections, we must secure a thorough understanding of viral regulatory particles.
人类病毒携带者是许多病原体周期性复发的重要因素。将病毒注入人类携带者体内，可以解释病毒流行的一些不寻常的流行病学特征，例如病毒在流行间歇期的存在方式，以及流行病如何在没有明显来源的情况下爆发。病毒通过自我失活，可以在宿主体内潜伏数月甚至数年而不被免疫系统察觉，从而能够在未来将病毒不引人注意地传播，并传播到新的地区。当人们认识到人类携带者这种沉默的活动时，就更容易理解病毒流行的动态，例如流感的爆发。在病毒感染期间，受感染细胞中的病毒通过其他受病毒感染的细胞产生的颗粒携带的调节序列进入潜伏状态。这些调节颗粒与病毒的病毒粒子相似，但包含病毒基因组的特定子集，并且不能在未被完整病毒基因组感染的细胞中复制。调节颗粒以前被称为缺陷干扰颗粒、非感染性病毒、无活性病毒、不完全病毒、卫星病毒和缺陷病毒。关于病毒携带者的产生以及人类携带者在病毒疾病的病理学和流行病学中的作用，仍有许多悬而未决的问题。本文针对调节颗粒、可能的研究以及携带者状态如何影响携带者的健康，提出并讨论了其中的一些问题。病毒调节颗粒限制了病毒感染的程度，并将活性感染转变为潜伏感染。就像多细胞生物利用激素作为化学信使来协调细胞功能一样，病毒利用调节颗粒在宿主内受感染的细胞之间协调病毒模式。许多病毒依赖这些颗粒来维持其持续存在。如果我们希望理解和有效地治疗病毒感染，就必须全面了解病毒调节颗粒。
