Rhinovirus

Belonging to the genus of Enterovirus and the family of Picornaviridae, the rhinovirus is known to be the most common cause of the common cold in humans and thus, it is highly important from a pathological point of view and also a medicinal point of view. It is the most commonly found viral infectious agent in human beings and the biggest cause of the human common cold. 

There are three different types of rhinovirus out there, namely Rhinovirus A, Rhinovirus B, and Rhinovirus C and in total, these three types consist of 160 different species of rhinovirus that are known to man. When compared to other major viruses such as smallpox and vaccinia, which are 300 manometers in diameters, this virus measures only up to 30 nanometers in diameter, and thus, it is quite small. The flu virus, on the other hand, measures about 80-120 nanometers in diameter.

A detailed understanding of the virus requires a detailed understanding of the various other aspects of the virus such as its history of discovery, the mechanism by which it works, the pathogenesis, the structure, vaccination, prevention, and so forth.

History of the virus

The diagnosis and discovery of this virus date back to the 1950s, in the United States of America. Some nurses had caught a cold and a mild respiratory illness and at that time, Dr. Winston Price, at the Johns Hopkins University, took nasal passage samples, that is, common cold yellow mucus, and separated the very first rhinovirus, which he then named JH Virus, that is, Johns Hopkins Virus. This took place in 1953 and his findings, which were about to make a major contribution to the world of pathology, were published in 1956.

The transmission of the virus and its epidemiology

Next, we look at how the virus is transmitted. Research on the virus has shown that there are two ways in which the virus is transmitted. They are as follows :

• From fomites, that is, contaminated surfaces, and this includes direct person-to-person transmission.
• Aerosols of respiratory droplets. This is very common.

Rhinoviruses are very common and found widely all over the world and are the primary cause of the human common cold. The various major symptoms include sneezing, coughing, a runny nose, a sore throat, a congested nasal cavity, and these symptoms are sometimes also accompanied by other major symptoms such as loss of appetite, fatigue, that is, weariness, weakness of muscles, muscle aches and malaise. Malaise is a very common sign of an approaching illness or an infection and generally consists of pain, uneasiness, and general discomfort. A very common symptom of a common cold. The people who are affected the most by the rhinovirus are the infants, the elderly, and the people who are victims of an immune system that has lost its ability to fight diseases and viruses completely or at least partially, this exposes the body to several viruses and diseases that are brought on by these microorganisms.

Shape and structure of the virus

Now, the rhinovirus has quite an interesting shape and structure and this has been studied earnestly by those researching and working with such microorganisms. They are not enveloped and when it comes to their structure, they are dodecahedral. The viral proteins are translated as a solitary, long polypeptide which is separated into nonstructural and structural viral proteins. A capsid makes up the human rhinovirus and this consists of four different viral proteins which are, namely, VP1, VP2, VP3, and VP4.

Effect of the virus on the lungs of human beings during common cold

As mentioned before, the virus under consideration is the main cause of the common cold in humans. It enters the human body through several ways such as the mouth, the eyes, or the nose. It spreads mainly through droplets in the air and thus, gets transmitted easily between human beings. Thus, when someone has a common cold cough, sneezes, or talks, it spreads easily and affects the other people around. What happens in the lungs is that the chest cold, which is known as acute bronchitis, results in irritation and an accumulation of snot or common cold yellow mucus inside the lungs. It becomes a chest cold from a common cold when the virus travels from the nose to the lungs.

Replication and reproduction of the virus

The reproductive cycle of the virus lasts around 8 to 12 hours, and it starts once the virus latches on to the host cell in the human body. Once it latches on to the host cell and infects it, it starts reproducing as rapidly as possible and thus, continually keeps shedding progeny viruses. These progeny viruses so produced can further the infection by continually invading the neighbor cells and infections them as well and then reproducing from there again. This cycle keeps on getting repeated for every new cell and thus, a simple common cold spreads throughout the body and might develop into a chest cold.

Severe effect of rhinovirus in infants and babies

Research and studies have shown that rhinovirus has a very severe effect on babies and infants and is highly dangerous when it comes in contact with them. It causes more than 50% of the major upper respiratory tract diseases, all over the world. What causes rhinovirus in babies is the proximity to someone who already has it. Thus, if someone with a common cold, the main reason of which is the rhinovirus, is close to an infant or a baby, it is what causes rhinovirus in babies.

Conclusion

The effects and causes and symptoms have been explained in detail in this article and by going through this article, one will be able to understand the dangers of rhinovirus in detail.