Watch the Viral Battle: Real-Time Footage Shows Flu Virus Breaches Cell Defenses
Scientists have, for the first time, captured real-time footage of influenza viruses “surfing” their way into human cells. This breakthrough could reshape the understanding of how flu infections begin. The discovery comes from a Swiss Japanese research team. They developed a high-precision imaging technique. This technique tracked the virus at the exact moment it breaches a living cell. Winter often brings the familiar symptoms of fever, body aches, and runny noses. The study now sheds new light on how influenza viruses invade the body. These viruses typically enter through respiratory droplets. They target susceptible cells. Until now, the critical moments of the virus’s entry had never been observed with such clarity.
🔬 The Cell-Virus “Dance”
Professor Yohei Yamauchi led the team at ETH Zurich. They used a custom-built microscopy system. This system zoomed in on the surface of living human cells grown in a petri dish. The approach allowed researchers to film the instant a flu virus attaches and is pulled inside. The cell does not simply wait passively for the virus. In fact, it actively reaches out. Yamauchi described the infection as “like a dance between virus and cell.” The virus is the invader, but the cell’s own intake machinery unintentionally helps it along. The virus first latches onto specific molecules. It then glides across the surface, almost like surfing. It keeps moving until it reaches a receptor-rich area. These sites provide the smoothest entry point.
🔭 Hijacking Cell Machinery
Once the virus binds, the cell starts shaping a small pit beneath it. A protein called clathrin strengthens and deepens this indentation. As the pocket expands, it forms a vesicle that envelops the virus and pulls it inward. Once inside, the virus’s outer coating dissolves. It is then set free to begin the infection. The virus cleverly hijacks this normal cellular system. The cell typically relies on this system to absorb essential substances like hormones and cholesterol. Earlier imaging methods, like electron microscopy, only provided frozen snapshots. The team overcame these limits by combining atomic force microscopy (AFM) with fluorescence imaging. They called the new technique ViViD-AFM. This hybrid method produces high-resolution, real-time images. ViViD-AFM showed that the cell actively participates. It summons clathrin and even pushes its membrane upward to capture the virus. This new tool can test antiviral drugs at the cellular level.
