In Article <DKKtnI.D1p at cix.compulink.co.uk>,
pete_leaback at cix.compulink.co.uk ("Peter Leaback") wrote:
Deleted stuff
>For a computer virus to check that it has not already infected a program,
>it must check some characteristic that is uniquely identifiable. It is
>this identification that virus hunting programs can look for.
>>I was wondering if there is an analogy in the biological world. When a
>virus infects a cell, I would have thought it would be counter productive
>for a second infection.
>>Is it known how many times a single cell can be infected ?
>>Pete Leaback.
Yes, there is an analogy in the biological world. As an example, a
bacterial virus (phage) called lambda utilizes a system to prevent
reinfection by another lambda or related phage. This phenomenon is called
immunity. In this case, a single cell should be infected with only a single
phage. Obviously, there are cases where this immunity fails.
Stu Kuhstoss
