Viral maneuvers revealed by surveillance system
September 7, 2008 | Source: New Scientist news service
University of Southern California virologists have found a way to tag and track individual viruses that are too small to be viewed with light microscopes (10-300 nanometers across).
They tagged the HIV-1 viruses by attaching them to biotin (vitamin B7)molecules, which in turn connect to a fluorescent protein called GFP coated onto quantum dots, revealing that the virus travels through cells via their cytoskeleton.