Respiratory Syncytial Virus

Why in news?

• The shot, called Arexvy, is made by British drugmaker GSK and is designed to protect people aged 60 and over.

Key facts about Respiratory Syncytial Virus:

• It is a common respiratory virus that usually causes mild, cold-like symptoms.
• It is serious infects infants and older adults.
• It is the most common cause of bronchiolitis (inflammation of the small airways in the lung) and pneumonia in children younger than 1 year of age in the United States.
• The complex molecular structure of the virus and safety concerns with previous vaccine attempts had stymied efforts to successfully develop a shot.

What is virus?

• A virus is an infectious microbe consisting of a segment of nucleic acid (either DNA or RNA) surrounded by a protein coat.
• It cannot replicate alone; instead, it must infect cells and use components of the host cell to make copies of itself.

 

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Q1) What is Ribonucleic Acid?

Ribonucleic Acid, is a molecule that plays a fundamental role in various biological processes. It is composed of a chain of nucleotides and is structurally similar to DNA (Deoxyribonucleic Acid). However, RNA differs from DNA in several ways, including its single-stranded structure, the presence of the sugar ribose instead of deoxyribose, and the base uracil (U) instead of thymine (T).

Source: EU approves its first vaccine for common respiratory virus RSV