Virology Lectures 2026 #21: Evolution

Viral evolution is the change of a viral population under selection pressures. Evolution occurs faster in viruses than in other organisms because viruses produce so many progeny harboring many genome mutations. In this lecture we consider the four main drivers of viral evolution: large numbers of progeny, mutation, selection, and quasispecies effects, and discuss where viruses came from and where they are going. Become a patron of Virology Lectur4es at https://microbe.tv/contribute ——————————— OUR SCIENCE PODCASTS ——————————— •This Week in Virology https://bit.ly/30uUhrX •This Week in Parasitism https://bit.ly/3ndUNUZ •This Week in Microbiology https://bit.ly/33tOUeO •Beyond the Noise https://www.microbe.tv/btn/ •This Week in Evolution https://bit.ly/3ne1bf5 •Immune https://bit.ly/2HOyCVb •This Week in Neuroscience https://bit.ly/2So12Yd •Infectious Disease Puscast https://bit.ly/3K4EKF0 •Matters Microbial https://www.microbe.tv/mm/ •Office Hours https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLGhmZX2NKiNlI2Creg0WZ7u5ORpbLVSsP – Who Am I? – I’m Vincent Racaniello, Earth’s Virology Professor, and I believe that education should be free. I’m also a professor of virology at Columbia University in New York. I’ve been doing research on viruses since 1976, and teaching virology in classrooms and online since 1999. On this YouTube channel I share videos of my lectures, MicrobeTV podcasts, and more. New videos are uploaded several times each week. I do not run ads on our work as they are disruptive to learning. We depend on your support. If you would like to support our work, go to https://www.microbe.tv/contribute/ MicrobeTV appreciates your donation and your support of our mission. Our budget and ongoing financial health rely on accounting for and accepting irrevocable, non-refundable donations from the public. Therefore, MicrobeTV considers all donations to be nonrefundable. Content in this video should not be construed as medical advice. ——————————————————————— #microbe #viruses #coronavirus #pandemic ———————————————————————