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Virology

Next-generation single virus tracking

Nature Methods volume 19, pages 1524–1525 (2022)Cite this article

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Multiplexing real-time single virus tracking with imaging paves the way for detailed information on virus–host interactions, offering a potential paradigm shift.

Accepting the validity of reductionism, being able to image single viruses as they interact with the host implies assuming a theory of complex systems or broken symmetry5. A complex system has many components whose comportment is difficult to predict or model. The relationships between the many components of the system — in this case, the constituents of single virus entry and fusion — lead to a collective behavior that in turn establishes new relationships with its environment; that is, the extracellular matrix and the host cells. Here, we stress the importance of imaging the whole process in live cells following single viral particles and therefore assuming a holistic and complex systems approach as demonstrated by Johnson, Exell et al.

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Fig. 1: Crystal structure of an antibody variable region in complex with an HIV-1 envelope trimer.

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Acknowledgements

The author gives thanks for discussions with colleagues of the Department of Infectious Diseases at King’s College and the Padilla-Parra lab. This work has been supported by the European Research Council (ERC-2019-CoG-863869 FUSION to S.P.-P.).

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  1. Department of Infectious Diseases, Faculty of Life Sciences & Medicine, King’s College London, London, UK

    Sergi Padilla-Parra

  2. Randall Division of Cell and Molecular Biophysics, King’s College London, London, UK

    Sergi Padilla-Parra

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  1. Sergi Padilla-Parra
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Correspondence to Sergi Padilla-Parra.

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Padilla-Parra, S. Next-generation single virus tracking. Nat Methods 19, 1524–1525 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41592-022-01670-5

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