A helper virus is a virus that allows an otherwise-deficient coinfecting virus to replicate. These can be naturally occurring as with Hepatitis D virus, which requires Hepatitis B virus to coinfect cells in order to replicate. Helper viruses are also commonly used to replicate and spread viral vectors for gene expression and gene therapy.[1]
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editReferences
edit- ^ Graham BS, Crowe JE, Ledgerwood JE (2007). "14 - Immunization Against Viral Diseases". In Knipe DM, Howley PM (eds.). Fields Virology (6 ed.). Wolters Kluwer Health. p. 403.
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