What are some interesting viruses?

Question

I'm looking for a virus with enough information on it or known well enough so that I can easily find books on it in my library.

Any will do, but if you know of any that are interesting in any way, it will be much appreciated.

Answer 1

Hepatitis D.  You cannot be infected with hep D without being infected with hep B.  Hep D is a 'successful failure' in that it survives, but cannot reproduce by it's own mechanism. It 'borrows' the reproductive mechanism of hep B to replicate. On it's own it is a failure, but is successful purely by lucking out that it is compatible with hep B's machinery.

Answer 2

I would suggest herpes viruses.  There are tons of literature available at all levels of understanding, and, we all carry at least one.  The most common herpes viruses in humans are HSV-1, chickenpox, and Epstein Barr virus, all of which are cool viruses to study.  They all have different biologies, cause different diseases, etc.

Answer 3

Mad Cow Disease!

Bird Flu!

(its a virus, i think)

Answer 4

HIV  very clever virus

Answer 5

HIV

Staph infection

Smallpox

Typhoid fever

Influenza

Malaria

SARS

Ebola