Join us at noon CT (1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT) on Tuesday, May 17, for an hour-long chat about viruses, with the Tribune's health reporter Trine Tsouderos and panelist Dr. Vincent Racaniello.

Viruses are in the news all of the time. The flu hits, we hear about it. H1N1 hits, we really hear about it. We hear about vaccines, some of which protect against dangerous viral infections. We hear about HIV, which has killed so many and transformed Africa. We hear about XMRV, a retrovirus potentially being the cause of chronic fatigue syndrome and prostate cancer. From our neighbors and friends we hear about viruses making the rounds among our kids, striking people down on vacation and even leading to untimely deaths of loved ones. We are covered in viruses, surrounded by them. They shape our lives in so many ways. Here's a unique opportunity to talk about viruses with one of the great experts on them, Vincent Racaniello.

Dr. Vincent Racaniello is the Professor of Microbiology at Columbia University Medical Center. Racaniello has been studying viruses for over 30 years. He trained with virology legends Dr. Peter Palese and Dr. David Baltimore, and later joined the faculty in the Department of Microbiology at Columbia University College of Physicians & Surgeons in New York City. He has studied a variety of viruses including poliovirus, echovirus, enterovirus 70, rhinovirus and hepatitis C virus. He is also co-author of the textbook, Principles of Virology, Volumes I and II.

Racaniello also maintains a lively blog, Virology Blog, which is a wealth of information about viruses, and conducts weekly podcasts, including "This Week in Virology" and "This Week in Parasitism." Besides being a stellar scientist, Racaniello has the exceedingly rare gift of being able to explain extraordinarily complex science to laypeople in a clear way that shares his passion for the topic.

 Health Chat: Viruses(05/17/2011) 
12:00
Trine Tsouderos: 
Hello everybody! Thank you for coming to this chat. We're extremely lucky to have Dr. Vincent Racaniello here to answer questions about all things viruses. He's a true virus guru, a professor at Columbia, the co-author of the classic Principles of Virology, author of the amazing Virology Blog and co-host of several podcasts, including my favorite, This Week in Virology. He has an extraordinary ability to explain complicated topics in a clear way. Okay, so let's talk about viruses!
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:00 Trine Tsouderos
12:00
[Comment From SueSue: ] 
I read an article last week that ALS could be a retro-virus. What do you think?
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:00 Sue
12:01
Vincent Racaniello: 
I wrote about that paper on virology.ws. The paper found reverse transcriptase protein, a retroviral enzyme, in the brains of patients with ALS, but not in the brains of patients who died of other causes. The finding is very interesting but needs to be followed up. At the moment we can't conclude that any retrovirus causes ALS.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:01 Vincent Racaniello
12:02
Trine Tsouderos: 
Who did the work on this?
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:02 Trine Tsouderos
12:04
Vincent Racaniello: 
Here is the paper: Douville R, Liu J, Rothstein J, & Nath A (2011). Identification of active loci of a human endogenous retrovirus in neurons of patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Annals of neurology, 69 (1), 141-51 PMID: 21280084
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:04 Vincent Racaniello
12:04
Trine Tsouderos: 
And do you know if there are any other diseases that have also been associated in a paper with this retroviral enzyme in the brain?
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:04 Trine Tsouderos
12:04
Trine Tsouderos: 
That might be a question for Douville and Liu...
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:04 Trine Tsouderos
12:05
Trine Tsouderos: 
The U.S. decided not to destroy smallpox. What do you think?
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:05 Trine Tsouderos
12:06
Vincent Racaniello: 
When I learned that the US smallpox stock is a collection of many strains, not just a single vial, I changed my mind from destroy to not destroy.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:06 Vincent Racaniello
12:06
Trine Tsouderos: 
Why?
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:06 Trine Tsouderos
12:07
Vincent Racaniello: 
Most of the strains are uncharacterized, with respect to sequence, replication, pathogenesis....there is a lot of information there. If we destroy them, that would be gone forever. I also think, that if the US and Russia agreed to destroy the stocks, they in fact WOULD NOT do so. They would then have to hide the stocks which would be even more dangerous.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:07 Vincent Racaniello
12:08
[Comment From DianeDiane: ] 
What do you think about the latest research regarding treatment and possible cure of HIV using stem cells?
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:08 Diane
12:09
Trine Tsouderos: 
I was at a healthcare journalists' conference last month and Francis Collins of the NIH mentioned this in his talk. It was fascinating.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:09 Trine Tsouderos
12:10
Vincent Racaniello: 
The idea of treating AIDS with stems cells is intriguing. You might know that a German patient was 'cured' of HIV infection by receiving bone marrow from a person with a deletion that prevented HIV attachment. The problem is that a bone marrow transplant is very costly and has high risks. Thus for the moment it's not a viable treatment - but this could change in the future.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:10 Vincent Racaniello
12:11
[Comment From GuestGuest: ] 
I read that the 1918 pandemic was caused by a virus that hit the person first, followed by a bacteria and that the stronger the immune response, the more likely the person was to die. Is any of this true, and if so, do you think this has importance for any currently unexplained illnesses?
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:11 Guest
12:13
Vincent Racaniello: 
The 1918 influenza pandemic was cause by influenza virus. Many people died from viral pneumonia; many also died from secondary bacterial pneumonia - that is, after influenza infection, the people were then colonized in the lung with a bacterium. The idea that a supercharged immune response was also responsible for some deaths is speculative. This is also known as 'cytokine storm' - it has been suggested to be a component of some contemporary viral diseases.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:13 Vincent Racaniello
12:13
Trine Tsouderos: 
The 1918 pandemic was before the age of antibiotics. I wonder what the outcome would have been had it happened after the development of our modern antibiotics.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:13 Trine Tsouderos
12:14
[Comment From katieannkatieann: ] 
Can you help me understand if there are any studies about XMRV being passed from Lyme Ticks? Sorry, if that is a stupid question. I have Lyme and XMRV, and I know a lot like myself
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:14 katieann
12:15
Vincent Racaniello: 
There is no evidence that XMRV is in ticks; it is a mammalian virus. I have not heard of anyone looking specifically for XMRV in ticks, although investigators do look for other pathogens.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:15 Vincent Racaniello
12:15
[Comment From katieannkatieann: ] 
What is your opinion on the fact that so many with MS, CFS/ME, Parkinsons, ALS are being found to have Lyme instead of their illness?
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:15 katieann
12:16
Trine Tsouderos: 
Hi Katieann: There's no good published evidence supporting that.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:16 Trine Tsouderos
12:16
[Comment From MissyMissy: ] 
Can Tamiflu help in other viruses or just influenza?
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:16 Missy
12:17
Trine Tsouderos: 
Tamiflu is an interesting topic in and of itself, as are all antivirals.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:17 Trine Tsouderos
12:17
Vincent Racaniello: 
Tamiflu is specific for influenza virus. However it may be prescribed for any respiratory illness that appears to be influenza, although the drug will only be effective for influenza.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:17 Vincent Racaniello
12:18
Vincent Racaniello: 
We spoke with an ER physician on TWiV last week. He said they don't prescribe tamiflu, because by the time patients show in the ER with respiratory symptoms, it's too late for tamiflu to have a positive effect.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:18 Vincent Racaniello
12:19
[Comment From MissyMissy: ] 
What other antivirals are available?
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:19 Missy
12:20
Vincent Racaniello: 
There are about 30 available antivirals, most of them against HIV. Others that come to mind are drugs to treat herpesvirus infections, hepatitis B virus, and poxvirus.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:20 Vincent Racaniello
12:20
Vincent Racaniello: 
And of course there is the newly approved drug to treat hepatitis C virus, boceprevir.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:20 Vincent Racaniello
12:20
Trine Tsouderos: 
It's pretty amazing we don't have more available, such as for common colds and viruses that cause digestive problems.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:20 Trine Tsouderos
12:20
Trine Tsouderos: 
Why is that?
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:20 Trine Tsouderos
12:20
Vincent Racaniello: 
That's an interesting conundrum. Do you want to know why?
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:20 Vincent Racaniello
12:20
Trine Tsouderos: 
Yes!
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:20 Trine Tsouderos
12:21
Vincent Racaniello: 
Those are all acute infections: they develop and resolve rapidly, within 5 days. By the time you feel ill, it's too late to treat the infection; a drug will have no effect. Until we have tricorders, drugs for acute infections won't be developed. That's why most antiviral drugs are against chronic infections - long time - like HIV and herpes.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:21 Vincent Racaniello
12:22
Trine Tsouderos: 
Wow. A Star Trek reference. I wish I had a tricorder.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:22 Trine Tsouderos
12:22
[Comment From Chuck Stack, M.P.H.Chuck Stack, M.P.H.: ] 
Hi! I'm pursuing my Doctor of Public Health & we have studied pandemic influenza preparedness in depth, what is the present status of "Bird Flu" H5N1? Haven't heard anything lately.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:22 Chuck Stack, M.P.H.
12:24
Trine Tsouderos: 
I have to say we in the media have to take the blame for that. We can be serially in love with topics...falling madly for them and then dropping them coldly.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:24 Trine Tsouderos
12:24
Vincent Racaniello: 
Since we began detecting avian H5N1 infections in people in Hong Kong in the 1990s, there have been just 500 deaths from such infections. The virus has not spread from person to person. Efforts to control infections in domestic birds help keep the number of infections down.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:24 Vincent Racaniello
12:24
Trine Tsouderos: 
Like h1n1. How much did we hear about that? We were in love. And now we can't be bothered.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:24 Trine Tsouderos
12:25
[Comment From CarlosCarlos: ] 
Vincent, did you have a chance to have a look on this paper?
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:25 Carlos
12:25
[Comment From CarlosCarlos: ] 
http://iv.iiarjournals.org/content/25/3/307.abstract?etoc Xenotropic Murine Leukemia Virus-related Virus-associated Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Reveals a Distinct Inflammatory Signature
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:25 Carlos
12:25
Vincent Racaniello: 
I just saw that paper a few days ago, to those who have asked me about it. Haven't had a chance yet to look at it.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:25 Vincent Racaniello
12:26
[Comment From JABJAB: ] 
What is parvovirus B-19? I was informed I contracted this 15 yrs ago and manifested acute arthritis. Can it have lasting effects?
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:26 JAB
12:27
Vincent Racaniello: 
Parvovirus B-19 is a small DNA virus that causes a rash disease in children also known as 'fifth disease'. It usually resolves in 7 days. It can cause joint swelling in adults.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:27 Vincent Racaniello
12:28
Vincent Racaniello: 
It's called fifth disease because before immunization, there was chicken pox, measles, mumps, rubella, and fifth disease.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:28 Vincent Racaniello
12:29
Trine Tsouderos: 
So of these we have vaccines for four of the five. But not fifth disease. I wonder if someone is working on a vaccine for it.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:29 Trine Tsouderos
12:30
Trine Tsouderos: 
A bit of news: GenBank has posted some new sequences from WPI.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:30 Trine Tsouderos
12:30
[Comment From Knocked outKnocked out: ] 
and what are the new sequences from wpi saying?
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:30 Knocked out
12:30
Trine Tsouderos: 
I don't know. I think a lot of folks will take a look.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:30 Trine Tsouderos
12:31
Vincent Racaniello: 
I'll have a look at them as soon as this chat ends. I'll take the new sequences and align them with the already published XMRV sequences. That will tell us if they are significantly different.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:31 Vincent Racaniello
12:31
Trine Tsouderos: 
There's a public tool called BLAST that makes it relatively easy to do this. But interpreting is the hard part.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:31 Trine Tsouderos
12:31
Trine Tsouderos: 
Even I can do it! But I can't interpret the results.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:31 Trine Tsouderos
12:31
[Comment From Tracy BakerTracy Baker: ] 
So there are ways to detect a retovirus? rt protein? Sorry Im new to this updated info.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:31 Tracy Baker
12:32
Trine Tsouderos: 
Tracy no need to apologize for not being a virologist.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:32 Trine Tsouderos
12:32
Vincent Racaniello: 
In the ALS patients the retrovirus protein was detected by doing an enzyme assay on the patient samples. They also used antibodies to the reverse transcriptase to detect the protein in brain tissues.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:32 Vincent Racaniello
12:33
[Comment From SamanthaSamantha: ] 
I read recently that antibodies from people who had H1N1 might be able to be used to develop a flu vaccine that would work for many more strains. What's the status of this?
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:33 Samantha
12:34
Vincent Racaniello: 
That's a very interesting set of studies in which they identified in certain people a set of antibodies that can block infection with a broad range of influenza virus strains. Scientists were able to determine what these antibodies are directed against, and are using the information to design a broadly protective flu vaccine. In my view such a vaccine could be available in the next decade. Very exciting developments.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:34 Vincent Racaniello
12:35
Trine Tsouderos: 
A universal flu vaccine? So we wouldn't have to roll up our shirtsleeves every fall? Or let someone squirt something up our nose?
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:35 Trine Tsouderos
12:36
Vincent Racaniello: 
Yes, a universal flu vaccine. Ideally, one or a few immunizations early in life; or at least one immunization every 10 years, not every year.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:36 Vincent Racaniello
12:36
[Comment From madlymadly: ] 
What in your opinions, is the most pressing global concern regarding viruses (besides an impending influenza pandemic-H5N1 or new strain)?
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:36 madly
12:37
Vincent Racaniello: 
My most pressing concern is increasing the NIH budget so that we can continue to work on viruses. This year the budget is being significantly cut, so essential research will not be done. This includes work on all viruses.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:37 Vincent Racaniello
12:38
Trine Tsouderos: 
I would say HIV remains an enormous problem globally.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:38 Trine Tsouderos
12:38
Vincent Racaniello: 
Obviously HIV-1 remains a huge problem, because even with triple drug therapy, the infection can't be cured. Developing an HIV vaccine and a way to cure infected people is a must.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:38 Vincent Racaniello
12:39
[Comment From ronald amodeoronald amodeo: ] 
does a upper respiratory viral infection normally become a bacterial infection and if so how?
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:39 ronald amodeo
12:40
Trine Tsouderos: 
My son currently has an upper respiratory infection. I'm guessing it's viral. Hoping it doesn't turn into a bacterial one...
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:40 Trine Tsouderos
12:40
Vincent Racaniello: 
Upper tract infections (common colds) are typically resolved without bacterial infections, but in someone with a weak immune system, can lead to bacterial infections. The mechanisms aren't understood.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:40 Vincent Racaniello
12:41
[Comment From KellyKelly: ] 
Could you explain what is known about making humanherpesvirus dormant? My antibody titers to EBV, HHV-6, CMV and HSV run from about 3 times normal to 35 times normal and vary over time, and I am symptomatic (flu-like usually) when they are high.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:41 Kelly
12:41
Trine Tsouderos: 
Kelly: That sounds miserable.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:41 Trine Tsouderos
12:42
Vincent Racaniello: 
A feature of all the herpesviruses (EBV, HHV, CMV, HSV) is that they produce life-long, chronic infections. In some people they do not cause symptoms; in others they may cause a variety of clinical signs. Explaining how the viruses become dormant is beyond this chat, but I suggest you look at my virology lectures at bit.ly/cuvirology. There is one on latent infections.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:42 Vincent Racaniello
12:42
[Comment From KassyKassy: ] 
Dr. Racaniello, Ms. Tsouderos, thanks for this live chat. My child's serology turned up antibodies to MLVs. Does the presence of antibodies indicate a reaction to a pathogen?
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:42 Kassy
12:44
Vincent Racaniello: 
The presence of antibodies to a virus could indicate an infection with a virus, or could simply indicate cross-reacting antibodies, that is, antibodies to another protein that cross react with the viral protein. Distinguishing between the two requires that other clinical assays be run.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:44 Vincent Racaniello
12:44
[Comment From KassyKassy: ] 
You mentioned the urgency of increasing the NIH budget for virus study. How can concerned citizens best advocate for that budget increase?
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:44 Kassy
12:45
Vincent Racaniello: 
I suggest that you write your Senators and representatives and urge that they do not cut the NIH budget. If they hear from enough people it will get done; it's happened in the past.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:45 Vincent Racaniello
12:46
[Comment From madlymadly: ] 
How do computational methods enhance research and clinical applications against viruses? Are there other novel methods that may involve non-traditional laboratory-based techniques?
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:46 madly
12:46
Trine Tsouderos: 
This sounds like a great topic for a story.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:46 Trine Tsouderos
12:48
Vincent Racaniello: 
Computational methods have become more and more used because we have so much data to analyze now. For example, we can easily determine the sequence of everyone's DNA, and figure out what diseases they might get - but to analyze everyone's sequence requires a lot of computational power. The same can be said for medical records - examining them can reveal many unknown disease associations. A good argument for computerizing all medical records in the US.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:48 Vincent Racaniello
12:49
[Comment From Knocked outKnocked out: ] 
I would like to know why so little doctors know about NK Cells. They seem to have an important function in the immune system
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:49 Knocked out
12:49
Vincent Racaniello: 
In fact many scientists are working on NK cells; I just heard a terrific seminar the other day. But that information has not yet filtered down to physicians; it takes time to translate basic research into clinical practice. But you are right, these cells are vital for protecting against some infections.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:49 Vincent Racaniello
12:50
[Comment From Knocked outKnocked out: ] 
What is the role of RNASE-L and why is there a defect in MeCFS patients
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:50 Knocked out
12:50
Vincent Racaniello: 
RNAse-L is a protein that we produce in response to viral infections. It breaks down viral RNA and therefore has antiviral effects.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:50 Vincent Racaniello
12:51
[Comment From KateKate: ] 
Do you consider the Shin/Singh study to be a validation replication of the Lombardi/Mikovits study?
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:51 Kate
12:52
Vincent Racaniello: 
It's not a replication because it's not the exact study. But Singh used the same techniques. I understand the limitations and I agree that a broader replication study is needed.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:52 Vincent Racaniello
12:53
Trine Tsouderos: 
There is this idea out there in some patient forums that if you don't replicate a study down to the smallest detail - same lot number on the test tubes, same everything - that it is not a true replication of the study. I don't think this is what scientists mean when they talk about replication...true?
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:53 Trine Tsouderos
12:54
Vincent Racaniello: 
If you hold to that description, then no study is ever replicated. For example, you cannot replicate the physical location of the study, which in some cases might have an influence. You have to work within the limitations of reason.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:54 Vincent Racaniello
12:54
[Comment From JamesJames: ] 
so far as hiv goes if someone take care of there self can they live a long time?
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:54 James
12:55
Vincent Racaniello: 
In most cases an AIDS patient being treated with triple antiviral therapy can live a long life, as long as therapy is not interrupted.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:55 Vincent Racaniello
12:56
[Comment From madlymadly: ] 
How much of our study of viruses are deconstructing them and using them as vehicles for treatment against other viruses and conditions?
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:56 madly
12:57
Vincent Racaniello: 
While most studies on viruses are aimed at trying to prevent or cure infections, a good portion are aimed at what you suggest: using viruses to treat other conditions. Viruses can be used as vectors to deliver vaccines, and also for gene therapy, to deliver a gene that a person might be lacking. These and similar studies are ongoing.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:57 Vincent Racaniello
12:57
Chicago Tribune: 
The question below is in regard to Vincent Racaniello's answer at 12:55.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:57 Chicago Tribune
12:57
[Comment From GuestGuest: ] 
when you say interrupted meaning ?
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:57 Guest
12:59
Vincent Racaniello: 
When I say interrupted, I mean to stop taking antiviral drugs. Many individuals do that for a variety of reasons, but it's not a good idea because it allows the viruses to begin multiplying. AIDS patients have a long-lived 'reservoir' of infected cells which begin making virus when drug therapy stops.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:59 Vincent Racaniello
12:59
[Comment From madlymadly: ] 
Are we using viruses to treat cancer too though there are viruses that cause cancer?
Tuesday May 17, 2011 12:59 madly
1:00
Vincent Racaniello: 
Yes, we are testing the idea of using viruses to treat cancer. In general we don't use cancer-causing viruses to treat cancers. For example, a common virus, reovirus, which causes little disease in humans, is being used to treat head and neck cancers. These studies are very exciting and offer hope to individuals with untreatable cancers.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 1:00 Vincent Racaniello
1:01
[Comment From Knocked outKnocked out: ] 
Where isthe HIV reservoir in human beings?
Tuesday May 17, 2011 1:01 Knocked out
1:01
Vincent Racaniello: 
The HIV reservoir is probably the long-lived stem cell in the bone marrow, and memory T cells. See the latest twiv.tv.
Tuesday May 17, 2011 1:01 Vincent Racaniello
1:01
Trine Tsouderos: 
Sadly, that is all we have time for. I think we could talk all day about viruses and never run out of topics. For anybody interested, Vincent's textbook, Principles of Virology, is just an amazing wealth of information, explained beautifully. I actually read these two volumes, and found them fascinating, as a layperson. Thank you all for joining us for this chat, and see you next time!
Tuesday May 17, 2011 1:01 Trine Tsouderos
1:03
Trine Tsouderos: 
Next week, my colleague Deborah Shelton will be chatting about summertime safety for kids. Sunburns, pool safety, etc. Important stuff. Noon CT, here. Thanks again! Also follow me on Twitter: @ChicagoScience and Vincent @Profvrr. Have a great week!
Tuesday May 17, 2011 1:03 Trine Tsouderos
1:03