Replication Strategies of the Single Stranded RNA Viruses of Eukaryotes

Our knowledge of the molecular biology of virus replication has expanded dramatically in the last few years, especially with the advent of rapid techniques for obtaining the nucleotide sequence of viral genomes. Full or partial sequences of virus genomes are appearing monthly, and it seems appropriate at this time to review the subject of the strategies used for replication by RNA animal viruses in the hope of formulating a conceptual framework in which to organize the new sequence information. This chapter will be concerned with the single-stranded RNA viruses which replicate via RNA intermediates and will focus on the animal viruses, but selected plant viruses whose replication strategies are known will also be discussed. The primary topics will be RNA transcription (the production of virus-specific messages), RNA replication (synthesis of viral genomes), and mRNA translation (synthesis and processing of viral proteins)