A tale of two viruses : parallels in the research trajectories of tumor and bacterial viruses / Neeraja Sankaran.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Sankaran, Neeraja, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Bacteriophages.

Sarcoma.

Viruses.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (xvi, 296 pages)

Edition:

1st edition.

Place of Publication:

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania : University of Pittsburgh Press, [2021]

Summary:

"In 1965, French microbiologist Andre Lwoff was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his work on lysogeny-one of the two types of viral life cycles-which resolved a contentious debate among scientists about the nature of viruses. A Tale of Two Viruses is the first study of medical virology to compare the history of two groups of medically important viruses-bacteriophages, which infect bacteria, and sarcoma agents, which cause cancer-and the importance of Lwoff's discovery to our modern understanding of what a virus is. Although these two groups of viruses may at first glance appear to have little in common, they share uniquely parallel histories. The lysogenic cycle, unlike the lytic, enables viruses to replicate in the host cell without destroying it and to remain dormant in a cell's genetic material indefinitely, or until induced by UV radiation. But until Lwoff's discovery of the mechanism of lysogeny, microbiologist Felix d'Herelle and pathologist Peyton Rous, who themselves first discovered and argued for the viral identity of bacteriophages and certain types of cancer, respectively, faced opposition from contemporary researchers who would not accept their findings. By following the research trajectories of the two virus groups, Sankaran takes a novel approach to the history of the development of the field of medical virology, considering both the flux in scientific concepts over time and the broader scientific landscapes or styles that shaped those ideas and practices"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Called or recalled to life: discoveries and conceptions

Epochs of incredulity and belief: reception and ripples

What was a virus?

Romancing the phage

Reawakenings: the viral etiology of tumors

What viruses became: new visions from new tools

Knitting done: lysogeny as linchpin.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

9780822987710

0822987716

OCLC:

1239736316