Video Animasi – Influenza [sub Indonesia]

Summary

Influenza, or the flu, is a contagious viral infection affecting the nose, throat, and lungs, causing symptoms like fever, sore throat, and fatigue. The virus spreads through droplets from infected people or contaminated surfaces. Inside the body, the flu virus uses protein spikes to invade cells and replicate, producing new viruses that spread further. Antiviral drugs like oseltamivir and zanamivir can block the virus's ability to infect more cells. The best prevention is the annual flu vaccine, which stimulates the immune system to produce antibodies, offering protection from various flu strains and reducing the severity of infection.

Takeaways

• 😀 Influenza (flu) is a contagious viral infection that affects the nose, throat, and lungs, causing symptoms like fever, chills, sore throat, cough, muscle aches, and fatigue.
• 😀 The flu virus is incredibly small and can only be seen under an electron microscope. Its genetic material contains the instructions to make more virus copies.
• 😀 The virus is enclosed in a protective protein shell, and it has an outer envelope that helps it infect cells by merging with their membrane.
• 😀 The flu virus uses H-spikes as a key to enter cells and N-spikes to release new viruses, spreading the infection.
• 😀 There are 17 known types of H-spikes and 9 types of N-spikes that help categorize flu viruses, such as H5N1.
• 😀 You can catch the flu by touching objects contaminated with the virus or through contact with body fluids from infected people or animals.
• 😀 When an infected person talks, coughs, or sneezes, flu droplets can land in your mouth or nose and travel into your lungs.
• 😀 Once inside your body, the virus infects healthy cells by inserting its H-spike into a receptor on the cell membrane, like a key in a lock.
• 😀 The viral genetic material hijacks the host cell's machinery to make copies of the virus, which are then assembled and released to infect more cells.
• 😀 Antiviral drugs like oseltamivir and zanamivir can help reduce the severity or duration of the flu by blocking the viral N-spike, preventing new viruses from escaping infected cells.
• 😀 The best way to protect yourself from the flu is by getting the flu vaccine annually. The vaccine stimulates an immune response without causing illness.
• 😀 Flu vaccines expose your immune system to weakened or dead versions of the virus, prompting the body to produce antibodies that target specific flu strains, providing protection against future infections.

Q & A

What is influenza, and what parts of the body does it affect?

Influenza, or the flu, is a contagious viral infection that primarily affects the nose, throat, and lungs.

How are flu viruses structured and how do they function?

The flu virus is made up of a genetic material enclosed in a protein shell. It also has an outer envelope with protein spikes, H-spikes and N-spikes, which help it infect cells and spread.

What role do H-spikes and N-spikes play in the flu virus's ability to infect the body?

H-spikes act like keys, helping the virus enter cells, while N-spikes help new viral particles break away from infected cells to infect others.

How do people typically get infected with the flu?

The flu virus spreads when an infected person coughs, sneezes, or talks, releasing droplets that land in the mouth or nose of others. It can also spread through contact with contaminated surfaces.

What happens once the flu virus enters the body?

Once inside the body, the flu virus uses its H-spike to attach to a healthy cell, entering the cell where it replicates and hijacks the cell's machinery to produce more virus particles.

How does the virus replicate inside the host cell?

The viral genetic material moves into the cell's nucleus and uses the cell's machinery to make thousands of copies of itself. New virus proteins are then made, assembled, and released from the cell.

What mechanism does the virus use to escape from the infected cell?

The virus uses its N-spike to free new viral particles from the infected cell by cutting the bond between the virus and the cell's membrane.

What antiviral drugs are available for the flu, and how do they work?

Oseltamivir and zanamivir are antiviral drugs that block the action of the N-spike, preventing new viruses from escaping infected cells and limiting the spread of the infection.

What is the best way to protect yourself from the flu?

The best way to protect yourself from the flu is to get a flu vaccine each year, which helps your body create antibodies against several strains of the virus.

How does the flu vaccine work to protect against the virus?

The flu vaccine contains weakened or inactive virus strains that stimulate your immune system to produce antibodies. These antibodies prevent the virus from infecting cells and destroy the virus if exposed again.