Tiny and swift, viruses are hard to capture on video. Now
researchers at Princeton University have achieved an unprecedented look at a
virus-like particle as it tries to break into and infect a cell. The technique
they developed could help scientists learn more about how to deliver drugs via
nanoparticles — which are about the same size as viruses — as well as how to
prevent viral infection from occurring.
The video reveals a virus-like particle zipping around in a
rapid, erratic manner until it encounters a cell, bounces and skids along the
surface, and either lifts off again or, in much less time than it takes to
blink an eye, slips into the cell’s interior. The work was published in Nature
Nanotechnology.