Home › SMLE (Saudi Medical Licensing) › Microbiology › Virology › Tamiflu treats influenza by inhibiting neuramini…
Tamiflu treats influenza by inhibiting neuraminidase. What does that enzyme normally do?
AIt opens the nuclear pore of the host cell
BIt lets new virions leave infected cells
CIt copies the viral genome into fresh RNA
DIt fuses the envelope with the membrane
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: B. It lets new virions leave infected cells
1. Tamiflu, also called oseltamivir, shortens influenza symptoms by one or two days.
2. It works by inhibiting the viral enzyme neuraminidase.
3. Neuraminidase normally allows new virions to leave the cells they were made in.
4. Blocking it therefore stops the virus spreading from infected cells to uninfected ones.
5. Copying the genome is the job of a polymerase, so that option names the wrong enzyme class.
_Source: OpenStax Biology (1st ed., CC BY 4.0), Ch 21 "Viruses", section 21.3 Prevention and Treatment of Viral Infections_
Related questions
What does a viroid produce inside the plant cell it has infected?Viroids are best described as which kind of infectious particle?Kuru spread among people in Papua New Guinea through which practice?How does an incoming PrPsc molecule multiply itself inside the body?Which molecule is completely absent from a prion?Which class of anti-HIV drug blocks the insertion of viral DNA into the host genome?Why does HAART combine several anti-HIV drugs instead of relying on one?A viral protein is a safe drug target only if it has which property?