New research identifies two new enzymes in bacteria that help fight off infection at a later stage, after an invading virus has already begun to replicate. The enzymes are part of the CRISPR-Cas system, and rather than using the typical CRISPR defense system of attacking viral DNA, they cut up viral RNA. The findings may be useful for biotechnology applications such as manipulating RNA content, and could potentially help in combating infectious disease.
A newly discovered form of immunity helps explain how bacteria fight off viruses
Science Daily - 4 Feb 2016 22:09
New research identifies two new enzymes in bacteria that help fight off infection at a later stage, after an invading virus has already begun to replicate. The enzymes are part of the CRISPR-Cas system, and rather than using the typical CRISPR defense system of attacking viral DNA, they cut up viral RNA. The findings may be useful for biotechnology applications such as manipulating RNA content, and could potentially help in combating infectious disease.
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