International A Level Biology / Microbiology

HIV: how the virus infects and leads to AIDS

Edexcel International A Level Biology (YBI11), chapter 17: Microbiology, specification point 6.6. Part of the full course.

Read the revision notes · International A Level Biology past papers

HIV infects T helper cells and inserts its genetic material into their DNA. As the number of T helper cells falls, the immune system weakens and AIDS can develop.

More lessons in Microbiology

• Bacteria and viruses compared
• Lytic and latent infections
• The bacterial growth curve
• Calculating exponential growth and the growth rate constant
• Culturing microorganisms with aseptic technique
• Measuring growth: cell counts and dilution plating
• Measuring growth: turbidity and mass
• Core practical 13: growth of microorganisms in liquid culture
• How pathogens enter and how the body keeps them out
• Tuberculosis: how Mycobacterium tuberculosis causes disease