--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It used to be thought that only a certain…" description: "\"It used to be thought that only a certain kind of virus could get into our genome and it's called a retrovirus and that's a virus that might be HIV for..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/53d/carl-zimmer-16331_certain_it-used-to-be-thought-that-only-a-certai_2647142.png" --- # It used to be thought that only a certain kind of virus… ![“It used to be thought that only a certain kind of virus could get into our genome and it's called a retrovirus and that's a virus that might be HIV for example.” quote by Carl Zimmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/53d/carl-zimmer-16331_certain_it-used-to-be-thought-that-only-a-certai_2647142.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/53d/carl-zimmer-16331_certain_it-used-to-be-thought-that-only-a-certai_2647142.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/53d/carl-zimmer-16331_certain_it-used-to-be-thought-that-only-a-certai_2647142.png) > “It used to be thought that only a certain kind of virus could get into our genome and it's called a retrovirus and that's a virus that might be HIV for example.” [Carl Zimmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-zimmer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote explains that historically only retroviruses were believed capable of integrating DNA into host genomes, using HIV as an example. **In simple terms:** Only retroviruses were thought to insert DNA into genomes. Key Takeaway Recognize that other viruses may also integrate DNA. Themes biologybiologyvirology genetics viral evolution Mood curious thoughtful Type scientific informative When to use this quote - research labs - public health policy - educational curricula - clinical diagnostics Key Concepts DNA integration host-pathogen interaction Questions to Reflect On - How might this change our approach to viral disease prevention? - What other viruses could have hidden integration capabilities? A Different Perspective Recent discoveries show non‑retroviral elements can also integrate, challenging the view. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Viruses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/viruses/) ## Related quotes > [Borna virus is not a retrovirus. It doesn't actually insert its own genes into our cells. What it does is just hangs out near…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-zimmer/borna-virus-is-not-a-retrovirus-it-doesn-t-actually-insert-its-own/) [Carl Zimmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-zimmer/) > [One could not have isolated this retrovirus without knowledge of other retroviruses, that's obvious. But I believe we have answered the criteria of isolation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luc-montagnier/one-could-not-have-isolated-this-retrovirus-without-knowledge-of/) [Luc Montagnier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luc-montagnier/) > [About 1.2% of the human genome is made up of genes, things that encode for proteins, the stuff that we consider us. There is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-zimmer/about-1-2-of-the-human-genome-is-made-up-of-genes-things-that-encode/) [Carl Zimmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-zimmer/) > [Viruses don't just make us sick. They can actually sometimes end up in our genomes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-zimmer/viruses-don-t-just-make-us-sick-they-can-actually-sometimes-end-up-in/) [Carl Zimmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-zimmer/) > [If you're looking for your own idea of your own identity you know the human genome may not be the best place to look…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-zimmer/if-you-re-looking-for-your-own-idea-of-your-own-identity-you-know-the/) [Carl Zimmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-zimmer/) > [We have Borna virus genes. We're part Borna virus, which is weird, but apparently our cells and our genomes in a weird way might…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-zimmer/we-have-borna-virus-genes-we-re-part-borna-virus-which-is-weird-but/) [Carl Zimmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-zimmer/) > [One of the big challenges now is to figure out just how many viruses there really are in the human genome. So far the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-zimmer/one-of-the-big-challenges-now-is-to-figure-out-just-how-many-viruses/) [Carl Zimmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-zimmer/) > [Over millions of years the viruses in our genome mutate more and more so the look less and less and less recognizable as viruses…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-zimmer/over-millions-of-years-the-viruses-in-our-genome-mutate-more-and-more/) [Carl Zimmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-zimmer/) > [“In other words, the more genomically complex the organism, the larger the percentage of the genome devoted to gene regulation by the environment.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-sapolsky/in-other-words-the-more-genomically-complex-the-organism-the-larger/) [Robert M. 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Church](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-m-church/) > [An important finding is that by determining the genome sequences of an entire family, one can identify many DNA sequencing errors and thus greatly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leroy-hood/an-important-finding-is-that-by-determining-the-genome-sequences-of/) [Leroy Hood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leroy-hood/) > [ \[Decoding the human genome sequence\] is the most significant undertaking that we have mounted so far in an organized way in all of science.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-collins/decoding-the-human-genome-sequence-is-the-most-significant/) [Francis Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-collins/) ## More by Carl Zimmer > [“I never knew any man who had once tasted the sweetness of experimental knowledge, that ever afterward fasted after ye Vapour garlick and onions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-zimmer/i-never-knew-any-man-who-had-once-tasted-the-sweetness-of/) [Carl Zimmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-zimmer/) > [If the world goes crazy for a lovely fossil, that's fine with me. But if that fossil releases some kind of mysterious brain ray…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-zimmer/if-the-world-goes-crazy-for-a-lovely-fossil-that-s-fine-with-me-but/) [Carl Zimmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-zimmer/) > [Today, when we look at a brain, we see an intricate network of billions of neurons in constant, crackling communication, a chemical labyrinth that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-zimmer/today-when-we-look-at-a-brain-we-see-an-intricate-network-of-billions/) [Carl Zimmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-zimmer/) > [“The extra clutter adds no important insight; instead, it offers more clutter in which erros can lurk.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-zimmer/the-extra-clutter-adds-no-important-insight-instead-it-offers-more/) [Carl Zimmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-zimmer/) > [Evolution has led to some populations of people being able to digest milk without much trouble when they're adults as well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-zimmer/evolution-has-led-to-some-populations-of-people-being-able-to-digest/) [Carl Zimmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-zimmer/) > [Medicine allows people to live who would otherwise die, so antibiotics will let people survive infections that they might be otherwise very vulnerable to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-zimmer/medicine-allows-people-to-live-who-would-otherwise-die-so-antibiotics/) [Carl Zimmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-zimmer/) > [“Two hallmarks of Homo Sapiens are decoration and self-identification.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-zimmer/two-hallmarks-of-homo-sapiens-are-decoration-and-self-identification/) [Carl Zimmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-zimmer/) > [Over millions of years the viruses in our genome mutate more and more so the look less and less and less recognizable as viruses…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-zimmer/over-millions-of-years-the-viruses-in-our-genome-mutate-more-and-more/) [Carl Zimmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-zimmer/) > [ “\[Writing to Lucretius, on Epicurus' belief that the soul was no different from the rest of the cosmos; made of atoms\] "Death is therefore… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-zimmer/writing-to-lucretius-on-epicurus-belief-that-the-soul-was-no/) [Carl Zimmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-zimmer/) > [We may be sucking in all sorts of viruses and we really don't know the full range of them. 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