Viruses are genetic elements enclosed in proteins. Although some consider them nonliving, viruses are important biological entities because they have the ability to produce disease (Raven, 2010). One of the most common viruses in humans is the shortened Epstein-Barr virus (EBV). In this essay, the biology of the Epstein-Barr virus will be examined by discussing features associated with this virus such as the infection and entry process, viral replication, and consequences on the host cell. The Epstein-Barr virus, which is also known as the human herpes virus (HHV-4), is an important virus because it infects most humans. (Odumade, 2011). Although most people become infected with the Epstein-Barr virus at some point in their lives, it is often asymptomatic because it can exist in its latent phase. When people show symptoms, it is often due to infectious mononucleosis, the disease that the Epstein-Barr virus can cause. The Epstein-Barr virus is named after Michael Anthony Epstein, a microbiologist at the University of Bristol, and Yvonne Barr, a graduate of the University of London. Together they discovered and documented the virus (Wikipedia, 2014). The DNA of the Epstein-Barr virus is a double helix wrapped in a protein capsid. The capsid is surrounded by an envelope made of lipids, which takes up from the plasma membrane of the host cell. The entire virus has a diameter between 120 nm and 180 nm, while the DNA, which contains all the genetic information of the virus, is approximately 192,000 base pairs long (Wikipedia, 2014). The viral envelope contains glycoproteins, which are essential for infection of the host cell (Odumade, 2011). Many believe the infection has begun...... middle of paper ......e, 2011). Instead, the circular genome is found in the cell nucleus as an episome, where it is copied by the host cell's DNA polymerase (Odumade, 2011). During latency, only partial EBV gene expression occurs to keep it maintained. When the host cell is attacked by EBV, an immune response is triggered during primary infection that controls the infection, but does not eliminate it, so the virus ends up being present for the entire life of the infected individual (Odumade, 2011 ). Factors involved in the movement of EBV across a membrane, how the virus replicates, and how this virus affects the host cell have been identified. While there is still much to learn, what we already know provides insight into how this virus works, and we can use different viral proteins to manage the tropism of the virus and influence its transfer..