Question

The first virus to be cultured in human cells was
A. Poliovirus
B. Dengue virus
C. Influenza virus
D. HIV

Answer 1

Hint: Viruses are microorganisms which only survive when present in some other cell as they do not have their own machinery required for reproduction and growth. Viral infections have been known to humans since 1892 when tobacco mosaic virus in plants was discovered. Polio virus is one of the old viruses which was known to infect humans.

Complete step-by-step answer: Polio was a highly infectious disease in the history of humans. It is one of the oldest known viruses in the world. In 1941s Dr. John Enders, Fredrick Robbins and Thomas Weller were the first to develop a culture technique wherein polio virus was grown in human tissue cells. They also found out that these viruses not only grew in brain cells but also in other types of human cells also.
Therefore, the correct answer is option A- Poliovirus .

Additional Information: Polio virus causes a disease known as Polio. The symptoms of this disease include- Sore throat, fever, tiredness, headache etc. The severe symptoms of this disease is paralysis of hands or legs or even both. Meningitis is also a symptom of this disease which involves infection and inflammation in the spinal cord and brain. This is a lifelong disease and hence it should be prevented. For prevention children are given polio vaccines which gives them immunity to fight against the disease causing agent- Poliovirus.

Note: The oldest known infection known was polio virus infection, which causes severe problems such as paralysis of limbs. Hence it was of paramount importance to study these viruses in detail, and hence it was first to be cultured in human cells.