Question 1

Which of the following best describes a prion?

Accepted Answer

An infectious protein particle that lacks nucleic acids

Question 2

Viroids are best characterized as:

Accepted Answer

Infectious naked strands of RNA that affect plants

Question 3

Which virus is known to be the predominant cause of the common cold?

Accepted Answer

Rhinovirus

Question 4

A patient develops a painful, band-like rash along one nerve pathway years after recovering from chickenpox. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

Reactivation of varicella zoster virus (VSV), causing shingles

Question 5

Which of the following statements about prions is correct?

Accepted Answer

They are composed primarily of protein and lack nucleic acids

Question 6

Which virus has been eradicated from the world through vaccination?

Accepted Answer

Smallpox virus

Question 7

A viral strain emerges after mutations in genes encoding spike proteins. What is the most likely consequence?

Accepted Answer

Loss of ability to attach to host cells

Question 8

Which of the following best explains why a virus with an envelope loses infectivity when dried out on a surface?

Accepted Answer

The envelope, acquired from the host membrane, is sensitive to desiccation

Question 9

Which of the following is NOT a feature of all viruses?

Accepted Answer

Ability to synthesize ATP

Question 10

A patient receives oseltamivir (a neuraminidase inhibitor) 22 hours after flu symptoms begin but sees no improvement. What is the most likely explanation?

Accepted Answer

Neuraminidase inhibitors are only useful within 48 hours of symptom onset

Question 11

Which of the following best describes the lysogenic cycle in bacteriophages?

Accepted Answer

The phage DNA integrates into the host genome and is replicated with it

Question 12

Which of the following is a real-world example of a prion disease in animals?

Accepted Answer

Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE)

Question 13

Which of the following viruses is most strongly associated with the development of cervical cancer?

Accepted Answer

Human papillomavirus (HPV)

Question 14

A bacterial strain gains the ability to produce a toxin after infection by a temperate phage. What is this process called?

Accepted Answer

Lysogenic conversion

Question 15

Which of the following is NOT a possible host cell for viruses?

Accepted Answer

Ribosomes

Question 16

Which of the following best explains why herpesviruses can cause recurrent cold sores triggered by sunlight and stress?

Accepted Answer

They establish lifelong latent infections

Question 17

Which of the following is true regarding the genetic material of viruses?

Accepted Answer

A virus may contain DNA or RNA, but not both at the same time

Question 18

Which of the following is the correct order of steps in the animal viral replication cycle?

Accepted Answer

Adsorption, penetration, uncoating, synthesis, assembly, release

Question 19

A patient with HIV receives a stem cell transplant from a donor with the CCR5-Δ32 mutation and later shows no detectable HIV. Why is this mutation significant?

Accepted Answer

It prevents HIV from entering host cells by altering the CCR5 co-receptor

Study Guide: Viruses, Prions, and Related Concepts (GOB College Level)

Study Guide - Practice Questions

Study Guide - Flashcards