The video about fractals entitled “Fractals: The Colors of Infinity” is basically, an overview of the concept of fractals. It gives a view on how seemingly simple formulae can lead to complicated results. Interestingly enough, this concept can be applied to a variety of fields, including science, math, and computing. In the video, the history of the fractals concept was discussed, as well as the milestones regarding its discovery and how it helped revolutionize the human way of understanding works. In the video, Dr. Benoit Mandelbrot is introduced, along with his discovery, the Mandelbrot set. In addition, the application of fractals in the realm of computer science, particularly in the field of computer graphics. With the advent of fractals in computer science, aspects about their structure and nature can be better understood. Finally, how the concept can be used to better understand concepts in other fields are tackled upon.
In virology (the study of viruses), determining the structure and symmetry of the virus itself can yield insight on how it interacts with its environment, as well as the processes that are related to its function. Viruses come in many forms of symmetry, such as the icosahedral structure. Other structures include cubic, spiral, complex and the like. However, the icosahedral structure is one of the most interesting, since it is the structure of many important viruses such as rhinovirus, adenovirus, and the human immunodeficiency virus.
A virus with a capsid (protein coat) of icosahedral structure comes with 60 identical units which are placed in a 5-, 3-, and 2-fold symmetry. In order to visualize how these 60 units are arranged along the structure, it would be best to imagine a hexagonal net structure consisting of 20 equilateral triangles. If each of these triangles were to be divided into three equal parts along its3-fold axis center, then there would be 60 identical units all along the surface. An icosahedron has a symmetric order of 120, including all its reflections and rotations (Prasad & Schmid n.p.). Examples of icosahedrons in nature include viruses such as the infamous human immunodeficiency virus, which is more popularly known as the AIDS virus.
The icosahedral nature of the protein membrane of the virus is beneficial to the virus itself. For one, the icosahedral structure allows accommodation of both single- and double-stranded RNAs, resulting in versatility of the virus in different environments. The shape of the structure allows full protection of the genetic material of the virus inside the capsid, unlike in other structures or in virions where it is fully exposed outside, presenting itself in danger to external factors. In addition, it allows for the minimum surface per volume ratio, which in turn allows the virus to absorb the largest amount of nutrients in the environment despite its small size. Other processes of the virus structure, such as membrane binding and nuclear localization, are dictated by complicated structures rather than simple ones. Lastly, viruses with an icosahedral structure does not need to disassemble itself to release its nucleic acid compared to other simpler viruses (“Virion Structure”).
Therefore, one of the factors that give the human immune-deficiency virus an advantage is the nature of its structure itself. In order to combat this, more information about it structure should be obtained in order to yield more knowledge on the processes that occur within it.
Works Cited
Jayc2469. “Arthur C Clarke – Fractals – The Colors of Infinity”. Online video clip. YouTube. Youtube, 24 Dec 2010. Web. 13 Aug 2016.
Prasad, Ventakaram & Schmic, Michael. “Principles of Virus Structural Organization”. Advances in Experimental Medicine & Biology, vol. 726, 2012, pp. 17 -47, http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3767311/. Accessed 13 August 2016.
“Virion Structure”. Georgia State University, www2.gsu.edu/~biotkf/bio475/475lecture2.htm. Accessed 13 August 2016.
