#Viral Genome

[figurecollection]

Figure Maniacs vo.33: Tengen Toppa Gurren-Lagann Prize Figures by Banpresto

[pathogenic]

so cool that ur a scientist, i didn’t know!! can i ask what field? :3

I am a bioinformatician. ^_^

I will be assembling genomes for a living when we get our new department up and running, which should be done this month!

[mindblowingscience]

Scientists at UC Riverside have demonstrated a new, RNA-based vaccine strategy that is effective against any strain of a virus and can be used safely even by babies or the immunocompromised.  Every year, researchers try to predict the four influenza strains that are most likely to be prevalent during the upcoming flu season. And every year, people line up to get their updated vaccine, hoping the researchers formulated the shot correctly. The same is true of COVID vaccines, which have been reformulated to target sub-variants of the most prevalent strains circulating in the U.S. This new strategy would eliminate the need to create all these different shots, because it targets a part of the viral genome that is common to all strains of a virus. The vaccine, how it works, and a demonstration of its efficacy in mice is described in a paper published today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.  “What I want to emphasize about this vaccine strategy is that it is broad,” said UCR virologist and paper author Rong Hai. “It is broadly applicable to any number of viruses, broadly effective against any variant of a virus, and safe for a broad spectrum of people. This could be the universal vaccine that we have been looking for.”

Continue Reading.

[wilwheaton]

Scientists at UC Riverside have demonstrated a new, RNA-based vaccine strategy that is effective against any strain of a virus and can be used safely even by babies or the immunocompromised.  Their flu vaccine will also likely be delivered in the form of a spray, as many people have an aversion to needles. “Respiratory infections move through the nose, so a spray might be an easier delivery system,” Hai said. Additionally, the researchers say there is little chance of a virus mutating to avoid this vaccination strategy. “Viruses may mutate in regions not targeted by traditional vaccines. However, we are targeting their whole genome with thousands of small RNAs. They cannot escape this,” Hai said. Ultimately, the researchers believe they can ‘cut and paste’ this strategy to make a one-and-done vaccine for any number of viruses. “There are several well-known human pathogens; dengue, SARS, COVID. They all have similar viral functions,” Ding said. “This should be applicable to these viruses in an easy transfer of knowledge.”

Vaccine breakthrough means no more chasing strains

This is HUGE. This will fundamentally change how we get inoculated.

[spookebich]

staring at my virology notes but there are no thoughts occurring

[pathologylab]

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[reasonsforhope]

Pairing frogs and toads together might conjure memories of Arnold Lobel’s beloved characters — dressed to the nines in caramel coats and polyester — biking off toward adventure. 

But in the animal world, frogs and toads on nearly every continent are facing a much more harrowing adventure: a decades-long fight against a mysterious fungal virus that has afflicted over 500 amphibian species. 

Since the 1990s, scientists estimate that the chytridiomycosis disease caused by the fungal pathogen Bd (Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis) has led to the extinction of 90 amphibians. One of the lost species includes the Panamanian golden frog, which hasn’t been spotted in the wild since 2009. 

Fortunately, a new research study has finally pinpointed the virus that has been infecting fungal genomes for decades. 

“Bd is a generalist pathogen and is associated with the decline of over 500 amphibian species…here, we describe the discovery of a novel DNA mycovirus of Bd,” wrote Mark Yacoub — the lead author of the study and a microbiology doctoral student at the University of California, Riverside. 

In an interview with UC Riverside News, Yacoub said that he and microbiology professor Jason Stajich observed the viral genome while studying the broader population genetics of mycovirus (viruses of fungi). 

The discovery will undoubtedly have monumental impacts on future amphibian conservation efforts. This includes the possible launching of new research studies into fungal species strains, the practice of cloning and observing spores, and engineering a solution to the virus. 

But Yacoub cautioned that this is only the beginning. 

“We don’t know how the virus infects the fungus, how it gets into the cells,” Yacoub said. “If we’re going to engineer the virus to help amphibians, we need answers to questions like these.”

Still, as scientists strengthen conservation efforts to save frogs and toads (and salamanders too!) they also appear to be saving themselves. Yacoub pointed out several amphibian species around the world have begun exhibiting resistance to Bd. 

“Like with COVID, there is a slow buildup of immunity,” Yacoub explained. “We are hoping to assist nature in taking its course.”

Pictured: A Golden poison frog — one of the many species endangered by chytridiomycosis — in captivity.

Why are frogs and toads so important?

From the get go, every amphibian species plays an important role in their local ecosystem. Not only are they prey for a slew of animals like lizards, snakes, otters, birds, and more, but in an eat-or-be-eaten world, frogs and toads benefit the food chain by doing both. 

Even freshly hatched tadpoles — no bigger than a button — can reduce contamination in their surrounding pond water by nibbling on algae blooms. 

As they grow bigger (and leggier), amphibians snack on whatever insect comes their way, greatly reducing the population of harmful pests and making a considerable dent in the transmission malaria, dengue, and Zika fever by eating mosquito larvae. 

“Frogs control bad insects, crop pests, and mosquitoes,” Yacoub said. “If their populations all over the world collapse, it could be devastating.” 

Yacoub also pointed out that amphibians are the “canary in the coal mine of climate change,” because they are an indicator species. Frogs and toads have permeable skin, making them sensitive to changes in their environment, and they also rely on freshwater. 

When amphibians vanish from an ecosystem, it’s a symptom of greater environmental issues...

Herpetologist Maureen Donnelly echoed Yacoub’s sentiments in an interview with Phys Org, noting that when it comes to food chains, biodiversity, and environmental impact, the role of frogs and toads should not be overlooked. 

“Conservation must be a global team effort,” Donnelly said. “We are the stewards of the planet and are responsible for all living creatures.”

-via GoodGoodGood, April 22, 2024

[covid-safer-hotties]

Cloaked similarity between HIV-1 and SARS-CoV suggests an anti-SARS strategy - Published Sept 21, 2003

Yes, you are reading that date right

Never let them tell you "we didn't know the risk." They knew. They just ignored all epidemiological best practices. For corporate profit.

Abstract Background Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) is a febrile respiratory illness. The disease has been etiologically linked to a novel coronavirus that has been named the SARS-associated coronavirus (SARS-CoV), whose genome was recently sequenced. Since it is a member of the Coronaviridae, its spike protein (S2) is believed to play a central role in viral entry by facilitating fusion between the viral and host cell membranes. The protein responsible for viral-induced membrane fusion of HIV-1 (gp41) differs in length, and has no sequence homology with S2. Results Sequence analysis reveals that the two viral proteins share the sequence motifs that construct their active conformation. These include (1) an N-terminal leucine/isoleucine zipper-like sequence, and (2) a C-terminal heptad repeat located upstream of (3) an aromatic residue-rich region juxtaposed to the (4) transmembrane segment. Conclusions This study points to a similar mode of action for the two viral proteins, suggesting that anti-viral strategy that targets the viral-induced membrane fusion step can be adopted from HIV-1 to SARS-CoV. Recently the FDA approved Enfuvirtide, a synthetic peptide corresponding to the C-terminal heptad repeat of HIV-1 gp41, as an anti-AIDS agent. Enfuvirtide and C34, another anti HIV-1 peptide, exert their inhibitory activity by binding to a leucine/isoleucine zipper-like sequence in gp41, thus inhibiting a conformational change of gp41 required for its activation. We suggest that peptides corresponding to the C-terminal heptad repeat of the S2 protein may serve as inhibitors for SARS-CoV entry.

[literaryvein-reblogs]

Hello! First of all, thank you for the wonderful content! It's a real joy, and an enrichment, food for both the brain and the heart! I was wondering if through your treasures, you could find some writing notes/words/concepts/vocabulary relating to genetic engineering? Like...creating a virus, and a vaccine for it, modifying the virus so it has certain specific effects.... Thank you in advance!

Writing Notes: Virus & Vaccine

References How Viruses Work; Replication Cycle; Mutation, Variants, Strains, Genetically Engineering Viruses; Writing Tips; Creating your Fictional Virus & Vaccine

Virus - an infectious microbe consisting of a segment of nucleic acid (either DNA or RNA) surrounded by a protein coat.

It is a tiny lifeform that is a collection of genes inside a protective shell. Viruses can invade body cells where they multiply, causing illnesses.

It cannot replicate alone; instead, it must infect cells and use components of the host cell to make copies of itself. Often, a virus ends up killing the host cell in the process, causing damage to the host organism.

Well-known examples of viruses causing human disease include AIDS, COVID-19, measles and smallpox. Examples of viruses:

Viruses are even smaller than bacteria and can invade living cells—including bacteria. They may interfere with the host genes, and when they move from host to host, they may take host genes with them.

Bacteriophages (also known as phages)—viruses that infect and kill bacteria.

Size differential between virus and bacterium

Viruses are measured in nanometers (nm).

They lack the cellular structure of bacteria, being just particles of protein and genetic material.

How Viruses Work

Viruses use an organism’s cells to survive and reproduce.

They travel from one organism to another.

Viruses can make themselves into a particle called a virion.

This allows the virus to survive temporarily outside of a host organism. When it enters the host, it attaches to a cell. A virus then takes over the cell’s reproductive mechanisms for its own use and creates more virions.

The virions destroy the cell as they burst out of it to infect more cells.

Viral shedding - when an infected person releases the virus into the environment by coughing, speaking, touching a surface, or shedding skin.

Viruses also can be shed through blood, feces, or bodily fluids.

Virus Replication Cycle

While the replication cycle of viruses can vary from virus to virus, there is a general pattern that can be described, consisting of 5 steps:

Attachment – the virion attaches to the correct host cell.

Penetration or Viral Entry – the virus or viral nucleic acid gains entrance into the cell.

Synthesis – the viral proteins and nucleic acid copies are manufactured by the cells’ machinery.

Assembly – viruses are produced from the viral components.

Release – newly formed virions are released from the cell.

Mutations, Variants, and Strains

Not all mutations cause variants and strains. Below are definitions that explain how mutations, variants, and strains differ.

Mutation - errors in the replication of the virus’s genetic code; can be beneficial to the virus, deleterious to the virus, or neutral

Variants - viruses with these mutations are called variants; the Delta and Omicron variants are examples of coronavirus mutations that cause different symptoms from the original infection

Strains - variants that have different physical properties are called strains; these strains may have different behaviors or mechanisms for infection or reproduction

Genetically Engineering Viruses

Using reverse genetics, the sequence of a viral genome can be identified, including that of its different strains and variants.

This enables scientists to identify sequences of the virus that enable it to bind to a receptor, as well as those regions that cause it to be so virulent.

Vaccine - a special preparation of substances that stimulate an immune response, used for inoculation

Vaccines & Fighting Viruses with Viruses

Common pathogenic viruses can be genetically modified to make them less pathogenic, such that their virulent properties are diminished but can still be recognized by the immune system to produce a robust immune response against. They are described as live attenuated.

This is the basis of many successful vaccines and is a better alternative than traditional vaccine development which typically includes heat-mediated disabling of viruses that tend to be poorer in terms of immunogenicity.

Viruses can also be genetically modified to ‘fight viruses’ by boosting immune cells to make more effective antibodies, especially where vaccines fail. Where vaccines fail, it is often due to the impaired antibody production by B-cells, even though antibodies can be raised against such viruses – including HIV, EBV, RSV & cold-viruses.

Related Articles: Modified virus used to kill cancer cells ⚜ Genetic Engineering ⚜ Engineering Bacterial Viruses ⚜ Benefits of Viruses

A Few Writing Tips

As more writers look to incorporate infectious diseases into their work, there are quite a few things writers should keep in mind:

Don’t anthropomorphize. Really easy to do, but scientifically wrong. Viruses don’t want to kill you; bacteria don’t want to infect you; parasites don’t want to make your blood curdle. None of these things are big enough to be sentient to want to do anything. They just do it (or don’t do it).

Personal protective equipment. This includes wearing gloves, lab coats, safety glasses, and tying your hair back if it’s long. It is the same as Edna Mode’s “no capes.” Flowing hair looks cool all the way to the explosive ball of flames that engulfs someone’s head.

Viruses are small. You can’t see viruses down a normal microscope—they need a special microscope called an electron microscope. These are highly specialized and take a long time to make the preparations to be able to see the virus. Normally viruses are detected by inference—measuring part of them using an assay that can amplify tiny amounts of material, for example PCR.

Viruses don’t really cause zombie apocalypses. 

Vaccines work. But they take time. The best vaccine in the world will still only prevent infections two weeks after it is given. Drugs are quicker, but still take some time. But the good news is an infection is not going to kill you (or turn you into a zombie) quickly, so they both have time to work.

Scientists use viruses as a vector to introduce healthy genes into a patient’s cells:

Your Fictional Virus & Vaccine

When creating your own fictional virus, research further on the topic and consider choosing a specific one as your basis/inspiration.

Here's one resource. For some of them, you'll need a subscription to access, but those that are available give you a good overview of the virus, as well as treatment options.

You can do the same for creating your fictional vaccine:

Here's one resource. And here's one on vaccine developments.

Sources: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 ⚜ Writing Notes & References

Lastly, here's an interesting article on how science fiction can be a valuable tool to communicate widely around pandemic, whilst also acting as a creative space in which to anticipate how we may handle similar future events.

Thanks so much for your kind words, you're so lovely! Hope this helps with your writing. Would love to read your work if it does :)

[antispiralmessenger]

(via reuniclus)

[thebookishwallflower]

I want to make a post to inform people about the current situation with the bird flu (/avian flu/H5N1) outbreaks.

I don't want to cause panic but do want to spread information.

This is especially important if you live in an area that has a news system you don't trust to give accurate, timely, or honest news about something like a possible new pandemic, use your own judgement.

If that applies it is going to be very important to make sure you stay informed and follow these H5N1 outbreaks yourself and know how to best protect yourself.

I am no expert, but I do know a good bit about disease and influenza in particular, and have been following the H5N1 outbreaks as they've been happening, so under the cut I'm going to do my best to inform everyone I can.

Please stay safe, stay informed, and spread information, not germs.

What's bird flu and why do I care? (What's bird flu and why do I care?)

Avian flu and bird flu mean the same thing, an influenza virus that (primarily) infects birds. H5N1 denotes a specific strain of avian influenza. H5N1 can spillover (when a pathogen spreads from it's normal host organism to a new host organism) from animals to humans.

How could I get H5N1? (How could I get H5N1?)

Human to human transmission has not been observed yet (12/1/24) during this current outbreak. You can get this from contact with wild birds, especially water fowl, domestic birds, cattle, pigs, horses, dogs, and bats. It is also possible to get from raw (unpasteurized) milk and undercooked meat from infected animals.

What's the big deal then? (What's the big deal then?)

The common flu is not very pathogenic. How pathogenic something is determines how sick something makes the host, something that is highly pathogenic can cause severe disease. H5N1 is considered a HPAI, Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza.

H5N1 is also a Type A influenza virus, most known Type A influenza viruses can infect birds. There is one Type A human flu in circulation at the moment, however it isn't very prevalent.

"IAV poses a significant risk of zoonotic infection, host switch, and the generation of pandemic viruses. IAVs can infect humans and a variety of animals, such as pigs, horses, marine mammals, cats, dogs, and birds (S1)."

IAV - Influenza A Viruses | Zoonotic infection - when an infectious disease of a non-human host infects a human host | Host switch - when a cross-species transmission of a pathogen can lead to successful, stable, and continuous infections

Every species the flu infects, the more strains that pop up under a sub-type IAV, the possibility for recombination increases. "Recombination occurs when at least two viral genomes [or strains] co-infect the same host cell and exchange genetic segments (S2)."

The flu is pretty good at recombination, when given the chance. It is also really good at mutating, and fast. If there were to be a recombination event and a new strain evolved (this would be called an antigenic shift) that was highly pathogenic, highly infectious (good at spreading, which H5N1 is), that could then infect humans and cause human-to-human transmission we might have a pandemic on our hands. This has not shown signs of happening during this outbreak*, this is what to look out for.

This (a recombination event) is what caused the 1918 pandemic during WW1. This pandemic killed an estimated 50 to 100 million people in 1918, in a world with a population of around 2 billion. 7.1 million died of COVID 19, as of 11/9/24 (S3), from a population of around 8 billion.

We know more, we are prepared, it's not guaranteed to happen, and it's not guaranteed to be as bad. But the possibilities are endless and it's extremely important to be prepared and stay informed.

So what do I do? (So what do I do?)

Again, stay informed, and that might mean checking independent news sources, the CDC website, and more, to keep yourself updated, especially if you know your local news won't do it for you. You should also familiarize yourself with the symptoms of influenza, if you have it, stay home.

Keep yourself safe, we had a pandemic already, you know the drill. Cover your nose and mouth when sneezing/coughing, wash your hands, sanitize your hands, and get your flu shot. And, in addition, avoid contact with wild birds, poultry, pigs, and cattle if you can.

In the event that this gets worse, social distancing is very important, being outdoors, wearing a mask, and all the stuff above, you can shed the virus for around a week before you start feeling bad. Keep yourself safe and don't infect anyone else.

If that doesn't sound like it'll do much, I promise you it does. Those are all classified NPI's (non-pharmaceutical interventions) and even epidemiologists were shocked at their impact and importance during the COVID-19 pandemic. They did work, and they were incredibly effective—as long as they were carried out.

I don't want to cause panic or worry anyone, but that is how information ends of suppressed. I want to make everyone aware of what we might face so that we can fight it and be strong and stay safe.

If anyone has any questions, wants any clarification, any corrections, or wants to know some good places to learn more about this stuff please don't hesitate to contact me (@'s, dm's, or asks), I will answer as best I can.

Here's the CDC's page covering the H5 bird flu current situation.

S1 - https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5578040/

S2 - https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7106159/

S3 - https://data.who.int/dashboards/covid19/deaths?n=c

*with the exception of this coverage (as a possibility): https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/nov/19/bird-flu-cases-mutation-canada

[preservationofnormalcy]

[I am in a nature preserve in rural Louisiana. A small ranger station-like structure in the middle of the wetlands welcomes me through chain link fences as my driver signals his approach, and as I exit my vehicle, a man steps out of the station.

He is heavy-set, tall, a little overweight but in that working-man sort of way where his strength is evident. He’s wearing a white labcoat over a colorful shirt and jeans, with messy hair and old school mutton chops. I can’t decide if he’s going for a vintage look or just doesn’t want to deal with his facial hair. Huge hands clap together once as I walk up to the building, and he smiles.]

Meghan] Mr McCollough?

Jethro] Please, please ma’am, call me Jethro. Please, come in.

[The first room seems typical of what I would expect a station in the middle of the swamplands to look - a cot, couches, radios and locked long glass-paneled cabinets with guns. A large metal door on one end leads me into the next room, and this one is different. Computers, rows and rows of filing cabinets, and haphazard piles of paperwork on a laboratory benchtop that yield to clean, colored tape-zoned areas holding glassware, boxes of “Vacutainer” tubes, plastic racks. A well-used benchtop centrifuge in the sun-bleached cream and baby blue colors of equipment from the 80s holds tubes of separated liquid – clear on top, a strip of white, and deep red at the bottom. Another metal door on the opposite side leads further into the building. He gestures to a somewhat empty table with a chair on either side.

Jethro’s accent is slight but noticeable, quiet but gregarious. He doesn’t sit yet, but fumbles with a kettle and a hot plate.]

J] Don’t get many visitors out here. Pardon the mess. Tea?

M] Oh. Please, actually.

J] Yes, ma’am. The people above my head tell me you’re here to ask questions.

M] That’s right. I saw the, uh… immunization posters in the Virginia site I toured.

J] Oh, sure. That’s been routine for decades, now. Since they were developed in the 50s. Lots of progress, of course, but always lots to do. Half the issue’s the paperwork, you know. But, uh, yeah.

M] Does everyone get immunized?

J] If I had my way, yes. That’d be the right way to do it. But no, it’s only really required for so-called high risk zones, that’s what they decided.

[He gives me a wry smile over his shoulder.]

J] This here’s a high risk zone, ma’am. But…you won’t be here long enough for it to matter.

M] …here’s hoping. Umm. I had a list of questions.

J] Top of the list is probably “Jesus H, they’re real?”

[He laughs briefly at his own joke.]

M] …my work is more about the efficacy and efficiency of the Office’s divisions, departments, and programs. But yeah, kind of.

[He pours the hot water into two teacups, and hands me one, sitting on the opposite side of the table. His cup looks comically small in his large hands.]

J] Get the feeling you’ll be asking that a lot in the next months.

M] I do too. Let me see… what is the objective of the… Abnormal Virology Department?

J] So our mission statement is about the research, control, and prevention of diseases – viral diseases specifically, but other stuff comes up, but y’know, that’s another story – uh, diseases that fall outside the Office’s definition of “normal,” and our big goals hopefully are curative or preventative treatments for those diseases. It’s a tall order.

M] And… lycanthropy is a virus, like the flu?

J] I mean, as much as any virus is like another. Each one’s unique, even the flu subtypes, but yeah. If I may use some jargon,

[He pauses with a hint of eagerness for affirmation before continuing.]

J] It's a lysogenic virus, so if you get infected, it integrates into the host genome, more like, uh, I guess herpesvirus is one most people would know. Once you get it, you got it for life because it hides in your DNA. Like herpesviruses too, you have lytic phases too, where it becomes active again, it emerges out of the genome based on cues from environmental pressures or host conditions. Like the phase of the moon, you know, which is kind of unique. When it’s not actively causing disease, when it’s just sitting in your genome at these sequence specific integration sites across the chromosomes, it also screws with normal gene regulation. The sites it sits down, you get dysregulation of normal transcription, you start growing more body hair, eyes change color. Where the virus integrates is a little different across host genetic backgrounds, think like ancestries; do you know SNPs?

[He clears his throat.]

Anyway, that lysogenic, passive phase is why we need the boosters, it’s laying low, immune cells don’t see anything to protect against, and it preferentially hides out in memory B cells, some lymphocytes, and that also kind of messes up a normal immune response. Which is why you have the immunoglobulin in the shot too, but that’s getting into the weeds. Because if you don’t have a way for the immune system to stop it quickly when it decides to jump out of the genome again, then, of course, you have the active phase, which… you can guess about that.

M] How successful would you say the treatments are?

J] It’s pretty good, especially given this stuff is almost the same as we were using mid-century. If you have a healthy immune system, if you’re vaccinated at least a few weeks before exposure, so you have your standard immune repertoire ready to go, and then they’re exposed – assuming the inoculum isn’t, you know, that can be pretty high sometimes – then they probably won’t “catch it,” so to speak, it’s neutralized and doesn’t integrate into the genome, so you don’t have a permanent case of it. We can also suppress symptoms with treatments for those with especially bad cases. Treatment’s kinda heavy, with the administration and the side effects; not like you’re just popping a pill under your tongue; but once it’s taken hold, there’s no, uh, no real cure.

[Jethro is quiet for a moment, taking a glance out the window as he drinks.]

J] … listen, ma’am. I’m biased. I got a personal stake in all this. I’m kind of a lab guy, sure, but sometimes I go out there and actually… you know. I’m the boots on the ground here too. And I don’t carry the big guns like the guys in Security do, no, I’m here giving out shots to kids and families. There’s communities in this country, whole towns out in the swamps or up in the hollers that are majority-infected. They live with it, they make do. And they have a chance at that, at life, because of us. Hard to quantify, of course. If you’re looking for hard numbers, I can try and find ‘em–

[He gestures to the filing cabinets.]

J] If you got a week or two.

M] We can… coordinate records later. But we’ve successfully eradicated things like… you know, smallpox. Can we eradicate things like lycanthropy?

[He gives me a strange, wary look and picks up a plastic knife from the table, oddly stirring his drink. I take a sip of mine.]

J] I’d be careful, talking like that. Lotta people don’t just think they’re sick, they- we’re talking about people. People with a condition, sure, but the minute you start talking about eradicating is when we start having camps again.

M] … again?

J] There’s rural areas in this country that the Office hasn’t been in for decades. We aren’t welcome.

M] Can I ask what happened?

[Jethro takes a deep breath.]

J] In ‘55, the United States rolled out its polio vaccine program. Of course, the Office used the infrastructure, hustle and bustle of the whole thing as a cover for our own lycanthropic treatment programs. We, and when I say “we,” I mean the Office in general of course. I wasn’t even a pup then. But a couple Office research groups, the Wagner lab, they’d done deep research into the condition, validated a few hypotheses, and they were ready to pilot the production of a vaccine. They just needed plasma. From infected hosts.

M] … I think I see.

J] Yeah. Yeah, back then infected folks were basically ignored unless they were in legal trouble. Legal personhood hadn't been extended to lycanthropes yet.

M] Legal personhood?

J] Ask Ferd about that when you get back to Virginia. Unfortunately, that plasma was taken from… people who didn’t volunteer. Inmates at first, murderers. But scaling up collection, then it came from people who stole some cows, and then people who were even just accused of things. When the Wagner people showed the shot was actually working, the Office needed a lot more to even think about rolling it out everywhere it was needed, and people weren’t really volunteering, so…

[He sighs.]

J] We shouldn’t have been surprised when a lot of communities then rejected us after that. Word travels fast, and the symbol–

[He taps the OPN crest on his badge.]

J] –became the mark of the Beast. Figuratively. It’s been decades getting to the point where we can help people, and pardon my bragging, ma’am, but it’s people like me who are the reason why we can. Part scientist, part… social worker, I guess.

[The phone rings, and Jethro slides over on his rolling chair to answer it. He seems immediately worried, and after a moment of conversation he hangs up and rubs his face.]

J] Real sorry ma’am, gonna have to cut this short. I know you had a long trip. Maybe I can meet you somewhere that ain’t so out of the way.

M] Oh. That’s okay, Jethro. Um. How’s next Saturday?

[He rolls over to a calendar on the wall. July 2021.]

J] No… no, I’ll be needing a day or two off ‘round then. For the… weather.

M] …I think I see. I’ll call you, we can finish over the phone.

J] Probably for the best, ma’am. If you’ll excuse me, I got an emergency downstate. Small outbreak just confirmed, got some of that social work to do.

M] Should I be worried?

[He grins, throwing his labcoat onto a chair and pulling a dirty jumpsuit out of a pile.]

J] Hell no, ma’am. We’re professionals. Ain’t gonna be any rowdy gators causing any trouble.

M] ���gat–

J] I trust you’ll see yourself out, ma’am.

(Buy the poster here!)

[mindblowingscience]

Around 8% of human DNA is made up of genetic sequences acquired from ancient viruses. These sequences, known as human endogenous retroviruses (or Hervs), date back hundreds of thousands to millions of years – with some even predating the emergence of Homo sapiens. Our latest research suggests that some ancient viral DNA sequences in the human genome play a role in susceptibility to psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and major depressive disorder. Hervs represent the remnants of these infections with ancient retroviruses. Retroviruses are viruses that insert a copy of their genetic material into the DNA of the cells they infect.

Continue Reading.

[sourlemonsprout]

ayooo I made this like a year ago and posted it on my original blog, I thought I'd post it here cause why not lol?

⊶⊷⊶⊷

I've loved the RE games for a while now, but recently I realized I didn't know the lore that well.

Now, there are plenty of thorough videos online that lay out the lore of the games, but my silly little brain has a hard time following along. So I wrote it out in a way that made sense to me.

I haven't played all the games myself, so if something is incorrect, I’m sorry. Additionally, I left some content out to keep it as simple and comprehensible as possible!

(obv images are not mine)

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RESIDENT EVIL CHARACTER LINK

Mother Miranda lives in an Eastern European village. In 1919 the Spanish flu claimed her only daughter. In a state of depression, Mother Miranda finds herself deep within a cave network underneath her village, hoping to find the sweet relief of death and be with her daughter once more. This is where she discovers a unique mold (a form of mutamycete) with regenerative properties. She spends the next several decades researching the mold in hopes of using it to reincarnate her daughter. 

In 1951, a British medical student by the name of Oswald E. Spencer discovered Mother Miranda’s research. He basically becomes very interested in the human genome and goes off on his own to run his own experiments for the next few years. 

In 1962 Oswald E. Spencer hired a man named George Trevor to build him a mansion in the Arklay Mountains, so he could continue his research privately. 

Later, Oswald E. Spencer joins forces with two other men, James Marcus, and Edward Ashferd. The trio sets off to Africa to find a unique flower, the  “Stairway to the Sun”, which has regenerative properties. Using this flower, the men synthesize the Progenitor Virus. 

In 1968, Oswald E. Spencer, James Marcus, and Edward Ashferd, co-founded Umbrella Corp.  This “pharmaceutical company” was really just a front for their viral bioweapon research.

Above is the Umbrella Corp. Emblem  

Shortly afterward, Edward Ashferd gets frustrated with his two partners and moves to Antarctica where he starts up his own Umbrella research labs. Oswald E. Spencer dislikes this and has Edward Ashferd injected with the Progenitor Virus, killing him. 

 Oswald E. Spencer is working on Project W.  where he kidnaps children and injects them with the Progenitor Virus, in hopes of building a race of loyal superhuman soldiers. All of the test subjects die, except for one, Albert Wesker. 

In 1987, James Marcus and his assistants William Birkin and Albert Wesker created the T-Virus, by combining leech DNA with the Progenitor Virus. Shortly after this, the facility gets shut down(?), and the trio moves back to Oswald E. Spencer’s lab in the Arklay Mountains. 

Back at the Arklay Umbrella lab, William Birkin discovers that ~10% of the population is naturally immune to their viruses. So he created Bio Organic Weapons (BOW’s). His work with BOW’s is refined into making specific BOW’s, aka Tyrants.

(Late 1998) James Marcus is working with his own strand of the T-Virus, and he creates his “Queen Leech”. Oswald E. Spencer dislikes this as well and tries to kill James Marcus. This attempt fails. James Marcus’s body along with his Queen Leech are dumped into a sewage area, where the Queen Leech eats James Marcus’s body, and absorbs his consciousness. This sort of reincarnates James Marcus.

In the 1990s, Umbrella expanded, and Oswald E. Spencer commissioned a new lab facility to be constructed underneath Raccoon City. 

(William Birkin created the G-Virus around this time.)

In 1996, S.T.A.R.S (Special Tactics and Rescue Service) was created. It is technically under Raccoons Cities jurisdiction, but it's privately funded by Umbrella Corp. so they can have control over it. Albert Wesker gets assigned as Captain to the S.T.A.R.S Alpha team. 

In 1998, Rebbeca Chambers stumbled across a train wreck filled with James Marcus’s infected leeches. She ends up finding, and killing the Queen Leech (remember James Marcus’s consciousness is intertwined with the Queen Leech).

(Still 1988) S.T.A.R.S Alpha team is on a mission. Jill Valentine and Chris Redfield discover Umbrella Corp.’s experiments and learn that Albert Wesker is a traitor. They fight, and Albert Wesker injects himself with the T-Virus, and escapes. 

Raccoon City’s water supply is contaminated with the T-Virus. This infects the whole town and turns them into zombies. Umbrella uses this situation to test out their new BOW, a Tyrant named Nemesis.  Nemesis targets Jill Valentine. With the help of Carlos Oliviera, they escape the Tyrant and Raccoon City before it is nuked so the virus doesn't spread.  

At the same time, there's a girl by the name of Claire, she's searching for her brother Chris Redfield in Raccoon City. 

(All you need to know is through RE from here on out, she keeps searching for her brother and getting into dangerous situations where different viruses are present.) 

Anyway, Claire meets Leon Kennedy, and they go to the Raccoon City Police Department (RPD). The two get separated and Leon Kennedy finds the G-Virus. He meets a woman named Ada Wong, an independent mercenary who's trying to get her hands on the  G-Virus, and sell it. (She actually does this). Claire and Leon Kennedy escape Raccoon City through a sewer before it’s nuked. 

It's now 2004, Leon Kennedy was deployed to a village in Spain to rescue the U.S. president's daughter who was kidnapped. The village is plagued by the Las Plagas Virus, which has something to do with the Los Illuminados Cult. Ada Wong shows up and grabs a sample of the Las Plagas Virus to sell to Albert Wesker. Leon Kennedy saves the president's daughter, defeats the Los Illuminados, and escapes the island. 

(2006) Chris Redfield and Jill Valentine find Oswald E. Spencer’s location, and they go to his house. When they get there, they find Albert Wesker had just killed Oswald E. Spencer. (This is cause Wesker found out he was the product of Project W). 

Basically, Albert Wesker kidnaps Jill Valentine for a while and uses her as his test subject/mind-controlled dummy. (Eventually, she breaks free from Albert Wesker's mind-control)

Around this time, the B.S.A.A. was created. The Bioterrorism Security Assessment Alliance. (This is because bioweapons are being made worldwide) 

Above is the Umbrella Corp. Emblem  

Shortly afterward, Edward Ashferd gets frustrated with his two partners and moves to Antarctica where he starts up his own Umbrella research labs. Oswald E. Spencer dislikes this and has Edward Ashferd injected with the Progenitor Virus, killing him. 

 Oswald E. Spencer is working on Project W.  where he kidnaps children and injects them with the Progenitor Virus, in hopes of building a race of loyal superhuman soldiers. All of the test subjects die, except for one, Albert Wesker. 

In 1987, James Marcus and his assistants William Birkin and Albert Wesker created the T-Virus, by combining leech DNA with the Progenitor Virus. Shortly after this, the facility gets shut down(?), and the trio moves back to Oswald E. Spencer’s lab in the Arklay Mountains. 

Back at the Arklay Umbrella lab, William Birkin discovers that ~10% of the population is naturally immune to their viruses. So he created Bio Organic Weapons (BOW’s). His work with BOW’s is refined into making specific BOW’s, aka Tyrants.

(Late 1998) James Marcus is working with his own strand of the T-Virus, and he creates his “Queen Leech”. Oswald E. Spencer dislikes this as well and tries to kill James Marcus. This attempt fails. James Marcus’s body along with his Queen Leech are dumped into a sewage area, where the Queen Leech eats James Marcus’s body, and absorbs his consciousness. This sort of reincarnates James Marcus.

In the 1990s, Umbrella expanded, and Oswald E. Spencer commissioned a new lab facility to be constructed underneath Raccoon City. 

(William Birkin created the G-Virus around this time.)

In 1996, S.T.A.R.S (Special Tactics and Rescue Service) was created. It is technically under Raccoons Cities jurisdiction, but it's privately funded by Umbrella Corp. so they can have control over it. Albert Wesker gets assigned as Captain to the S.T.A.R.S Alpha team. 

In 1998, Rebbeca Chambers stumbled across a train wreck filled with James Marcus’s infected leeches. She ends up finding, and killing the Queen Leech (remember James Marcus’s consciousness is intertwined with the Queen Leech).

(Still 1988) S.T.A.R.S Alpha team is on a mission. Jill Valentine and Chris Redfield discover Umbrella Corp.’s experiments and learn that Albert Wesker is a traitor. They fight, and Albert Wesker injects himself with the T-Virus, and escapes. 

Raccoon City’s water supply is contaminated with the T-Virus. This infects the whole town and turns them into zombies. Umbrella uses this situation to test out their new BOW, a Tyrant named Nemesis.  Nemesis targets Jill Valentine. With the help of Carlos Oliviera, they escape the Tyrant and Raccoon City before it is nuked so the virus doesn't spread.  

At the same time, there's a girl by the name of Claire, she's searching for her brother Chris Redfield in Raccoon City. 

(All you need to know is through RE from here on out, she keeps searching for her brother and getting into dangerous situations where different viruses are present.) 

Anyway, Claire meets Leon Kennedy, and they go to the Raccoon City Police Department (RPD). The two get separated and Leon Kennedy finds the G-Virus. He meets a woman named Ada Wong, an independent mercenary who's trying to get her hands on the  G-Virus, and sell it. (She actually does this). Claire and Leon Kennedy escape Raccoon City through a sewer before it’s nuked. 

It's now 2004, Leon Kennedy was deployed to a village in Spain to rescue the U.S. president's daughter who was kidnapped. The village is plagued by the Las Plagas Virus, which has something to do with the Los Illuminados Cult. Ada Wong shows up and grabs a sample of the Las Plagas Virus to sell to Albert Wesker. Leon Kennedy saves the president's daughter, defeats the Los Illuminados, and escapes the island. 

(2006) Chris Redfield and Jill Valentine find Oswald E. Spencer’s location, and they go to his house. When they get there, they find Albert Wesker had just killed Oswald E. Spencer. (This is cause Wesker found out he was the product of Project W). 

Basically, Albert Wesker kidnaps Jill Valentine for a while and uses her as his test subject/mind-controlled dummy. (Eventually, she breaks free from Albert Wesker's mind-control)

Around this time, the B.S.A.A. was created. The Bioterrorism Security Assessment Alliance. (This is because bioweapons are being made worldwide) 

Above is the Umbrella Corp. Emblem  

Shortly afterward, Edward Ashferd gets frustrated with his two partners and moves to Antarctica where he starts up his own Umbrella research labs. Oswald E. Spencer dislikes this and has Edward Ashferd injected with the Progenitor Virus, killing him. 

 Oswald E. Spencer is working on Project W.  where he kidnaps children and injects them with the Progenitor Virus, in hopes of building a race of loyal superhuman soldiers. All of the test subjects die, except for one, Albert Wesker. 

In 1987, James Marcus and his assistants William Birkin and Albert Wesker created the T-Virus, by combining leech DNA with the Progenitor Virus. Shortly after this, the facility gets shut down(?), and the trio moves back to Oswald E. Spencer’s lab in the Arklay Mountains. 

Back at the Arklay Umbrella lab, William Birkin discovers that ~10% of the population is naturally immune to their viruses. So he created Bio Organic Weapons (BOW’s). His work with BOW’s is refined into making specific BOW’s, aka Tyrants.

(Late 1998) James Marcus is working with his own strand of the T-Virus, and he creates his “Queen Leech”. Oswald E. Spencer dislikes this as well and tries to kill James Marcus. This attempt fails. James Marcus’s body along with his Queen Leech are dumped into a sewage area, where the Queen Leech eats James Marcus’s body, and absorbs his consciousness. This sort of reincarnates James Marcus.

In the 1990s, Umbrella expanded, and Oswald E. Spencer commissioned a new lab facility to be constructed underneath Raccoon City. 

(William Birkin created the G-Virus around this time.)

In 1996, S.T.A.R.S (Special Tactics and Rescue Service) was created. It is technically under Raccoons Cities jurisdiction, but it's privately funded by Umbrella Corp. so they can have control over it. Albert Wesker gets assigned as Captain to the S.T.A.R.S Alpha team. 

In 1998, Rebbeca Chambers stumbled across a train wreck filled with James Marcus’s infected leeches. She ends up finding, and killing the Queen Leech (remember James Marcus’s consciousness is intertwined with the Queen Leech).

(Still 1988) S.T.A.R.S Alpha team is on a mission. Jill Valentine and Chris Redfield discover Umbrella Corp.’s experiments and learn that Albert Wesker is a traitor. They fight, and Albert Wesker injects himself with the T-Virus, and escapes. 

Raccoon City’s water supply is contaminated with the T-Virus. This infects the whole town and turns them into zombies. Umbrella uses this situation to test out their new BOW, a Tyrant named Nemesis.  Nemesis targets Jill Valentine. With the help of Carlos Oliviera, they escape the Tyrant and Raccoon City before it is nuked so the virus doesn't spread.  

At the same time, there's a girl by the name of Claire, she's searching for her brother Chris Redfield in Raccoon City. 

(All you need to know is through RE from here on out, she keeps searching for her brother and getting into dangerous situations where different viruses are present.) 

Anyway, Claire meets Leon Kennedy, and they go to the Raccoon City Police Department (RPD). The two get separated and Leon Kennedy finds the G-Virus. He meets a woman named Ada Wong, an independent mercenary who's trying to get her hands on the  G-Virus, and sell it. (She actually does this). Claire and Leon Kennedy escape Raccoon City through a sewer before it’s nuked. 

It's now 2004, Leon Kennedy was deployed to a village in Spain to rescue the U.S. president's daughter who was kidnapped. The village is plagued by the Las Plagas Virus, which has something to do with the Los Illuminados Cult. Ada Wong shows up and grabs a sample of the Las Plagas Virus to sell to Albert Wesker. Leon Kennedy saves the president's daughter, defeats the Los Illuminados, and escapes the island. 

(2006) Chris Redfield and Jill Valentine find Oswald E. Spencer’s location, and they go to his house. When they get there, they find Albert Wesker had just killed Oswald E. Spencer. (This is cause Wesker found out he was the product of Project W). 

Basically, Albert Wesker kidnaps Jill Valentine for a while and uses her as his test subject/mind-controlled dummy. (Eventually, she breaks free from Albert Wesker's mind-control)

Around this time, the B.S.A.A. was created. The Bioterrorism Security Assessment Alliance. (This is because bioweapons are being made worldwide) 

Albert Wesker moves on and tries to make West Africa a diseased wasteland. Chris Redfield and the B.S.A.A. team up to go to stop him. This is where they discover the Uroboros Virus. (This is an RNA virus in the Progenitor family. It was engineered by Albert Wesker). Chris Redfeild and the B.S.A.A successfully kills Albert Wesker.

In 2012, there was this thing called the C-Virus, which can mutate bodies while keeping their consciousness. For a while Umbrella Corp.'s was under some heat, but they revived themselves as “Neo Umbrella”. Neo Umbrella unleashes the C-Virus (in China?) and basically, Raccoon City happens all over again. 

There is this crime syndicate called “The Connections”. They strike a deal with Mother Miranda, she gives them her mold and the DNA of her daughter hoping they would help revive her. The Connections use the E-Type Mutamycete mold to create bioweapons out of children.  This gave birth to the genetically modified human Eveline, who had mind-controlling and regenerative powers. The B.S.A.A. caught wind of this, and The Connections loaded a research team with Eveline onto a cargo boat to ship her somewhere safer. Eveline infected the whole cargo ship with her mold, killing everyone except Eveline's direct handler, a researcher named Mia Winters. 

The cargo ship wreckage landed somewhere along the coast of Dulvey Parish, Louisiana. An old man by the name of Jack Baker found Eveline and Mia Winters and took the two back to his house to take care of them. Eveline infected the whole Baker family. 

Mia Winters sends an email to her husband, Ethan Winters. He drives to Dulvey Parish, Louisiana to save his wife. Unfortunately, Ethan Winters gets killed pretty quickly, but he gets revived by Eve’s mold. Eveline turns into a big mold monster, and Ethan Winters does his best to fight it, until Chris Redfield comes in and saves the day. 

Fast forward a few years, Ethan and Mia Winters have a baby named Rosemary (Rose) Winters. Somehow Mother Miranda finds out about this and decides that Rose Winters is the perfect candidate to use to resurrect her daughter. So Mother Miranda kidnaps Rose and Mia Winters and brings them back to her old Eastern European village. Ethan Winters goes to save his family. He fights a bunch of Mother Miranda's experiments (i.e. Lady Dimitrescu, Heisenberg, Lycans, Dona Beneviento, etc...), and eventually, Chris Redfield comes to try and save the day again. But Ethan Winters sacrifices himself for his family and blows up the whole village. 

Fast forward again, it's 2037. Rose Winters is a teenager now, and she has Mutamycete mold powers. She hates that she's different, and wants to get rid of them. She is told if she enters the Mutamycete mold’s consciousness, she might find a way to rid herself of these powers. Now everyone who's ever been in contact with the Mutamycete mold is trapped/a part of the mold consciousness. Inside, she fights off Mother Miranda one last time, meets her father, and then decides to keep her mold powers. 

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Again, I did leave some games/content out, but I hope this was enjoyable and/or useful and easy enough to understand!

- sourlemonsprout<3

[o-craven-canto]

Taxonomy rant

I’m sympathetic to claims that Linnean binominal nomenclature -- you know, the Homo sapiens Felis catus Quercus robur thing -- is inadequate to describe species as they exist in nature. But the problem is not with Linnean names, it’s with names period.

We interact with the world by imagining it’s made up of “things”, of discrete objects that belong to categories, have properties, and interact with each other; and to these “things“ we give “names”, which allow us to think and talk about them. Which is fine, as I don’t think we’d be able to interact productively with the world if it wasn’t for this level of naive abstraction. Imagine if we had to re-deduce the physical properties of each individual chair from its constituent molecules, instead of imagining the category “chair” and a standard protocol to make use of its members.

But then we fall back in the misconception that “species” are discrete, bounded categories built on variation around a central ideal type -- the Platonic essentialism that Richard Dawkins rightly considered the single greatest obstacle to most people in understanding biology and evolution. In reality, there is no “species” beyond the sum of all the individuals that make it up, which form smooth continua of variation and blur at the edges into related species.

We made a brave attempt at defining “species” as a group of individuals capable of interbreeding. This patently fails with bacteria and most protists, which reproduce asexually, and only engage in transfer of genes independently from reproduction. (And bacteria will happily accept DNA from different phyla and kingdoms, as if we could get pregnant from tree pollen.) It also raises the thorny question of what counts as interbreeding. Can two species interbreed if they bear viable but infertile offspring? What if the offspring is fertile, but sicklier than non-hybrids? What if they can interbreed just fine, but just choose not to because they have different mating signals? Even if you choose arbitrarily one step of the ladder of noninterfecundity as your criterion, populations that are not constantly mixed will drift away from each other over time as they accumulate new mutations.

What of ring species, which show that the ability to interbreed is not transitive, so that A can breed with B, and B can breed with C, but C cannot breed with A? In any given moment of time these are fairly rare, but if you pry open time and look at life diachronically, you will see that every single living population is like that. There is an uniterrupted chain of parents and children in which each ring obviously belonged to the “same species” of the previous and the next (or the previous hundred and the next hundred), but the first ring of the chain is a lancelet-like worm-fish thing, and the last is a turtle or a hummingbird or a cheetah.

You can choose to measure genetic distance between populations and set an arbitrary maximum as your species threshold, but distance is again not transitive, and again you run against bacteria -- a population of bacteria, allegedly all of the same species, can have quite different genomes from cell to cell, between environmental pickup of DNA, quasi-sexual transfer, and viral infections.

Shall we then treat individuals as unit of analysis, rather than species? (With a trillion billion billion bacteria living on Earth at any given time? Good luck) But then we run in the same issue -- where are the borders of the individual? Meiosis and fertilization at least create a clean enough break between generations in sexually reproducing species, but what of those parthenogenetic aphids and rotifera in which each individual is just a clone grown from a cell of their mother? What of budding hydrae, and clonal colonies of polyps and trees, in which an “individual” simply grows out of another as if they were but a limb?

For that matter, consider our gut bacteria, which outnumber by far our genetically human cells, and yet are a necessary part of our body no less than our own tonsils or gall bladder, despite being more unlike us than ferns. Consider mitochondria, of which there are a thousand in each eukaryotic cells, without which every oxygen breather would cease to be, and who still retain their own bacterial genome and transcription after two billion years of coexistence. Consider ERV sequences, which are but viruses that accidentally copied themselves into cells about to divide, and which make up at least 5% of the genome of every single human cell (parts of the genes for the mammalian placenta may come from there).

There are no species; there are no individuals either. Even cells and genes are on thin ice. There is just Life, a seething, shoggothy four-dimensional mass rooted in some Archean hydrothermal vent and stretching cancerous tendrils across the aeons, of which species and individuals are merely local clusters and sub-clusters that we point out and give a name to because, much like with constellations, it’s convenient for certain purposes. (Including making sense of Life and Its history as best as we can.)

Enough with that “did you know that sharks are not really fish?” nonsense. Embrace taxonomic nihilism. It is an objective fact about the physical world that the lineage of sharks diverged from the lineage of tunas before the lineage of tunas diverged from ours. It is not a fact that sharks “are” or “aren’t” fish, because categories are phantoms and nothing actually “is” except wave functions and the void. (It is also a fact that sharks are not Osteichthyes, but only because the word “Osteichthyes”, unlike the word “fish”, was defined in a specific way that excludes sharks.)

In sum, I support keeping Linnean nomenclature around on the grounds that

We need to give names to things anyway, and

I have a fetish for Greek and Latin roots. Dicopomorpha echmepterygis. Hrngh.