Archive · 5 Dec 2025
Scientists Capture Real-Time Footage of Flu Virus Entering Cells
Scientists have made a big discovery by watching how the flu virus gets into our cells.
They used a special camera to see the virus in real-time as it attaches to and enters a cell.
The virus doesn't just sit there; it moves around like it's surfing until it finds the best spot to enter.
The cell also helps the virus by making a little pocket to pull it inside.
This happens because the virus tricks the cell's normal way of taking in important things like hormones.
The scientists think this new way of watching the virus can help them find better medicines to fight the flu.
Scientists captured real-time footage of influenza viruses entering human cells for the first time.
The virus 'surfs' across the cell surface until it finds a suitable entry point.
The cell actively participates by forming a pocket to pull the virus inside.
The process hijacks the cell's normal intake machinery, which is used for absorbing essential substances.
A new imaging technique called ViViD-AFM was developed to achieve this high-resolution, real-time imaging.
- Who
- Swiss–Japanese research team led by Yohei Yamauchi
- What
- Captured real-time footage of influenza viruses entering human cells
- When
- Recently, as part of a new study
- Where
- In a laboratory using a custom-built microscopy system
- Why
- To understand how flu infections begin and to develop better antiviral drugs
- Research Team
- Swiss–Japanese
- Lead Researcher
- Yohei Yamauchi
- Institution
- ETH Zurich
- Imaging Technique
- ViViD-AFM (virus-view dual confocal and AFM)
- Key Protein
- Clathrin
- Virus Entry Mechanism
- Surfing and hijacking cellular intake machinery