Viruses can be named based on the first host cell that is found infected by the virus and the type of damage caused. Viruses can also be named based upon where they are first discovered geographically (e.g. Semliki Forest Virus, West Nile Virus), for the disease with which they are associated (e.g. Bovine Diarrhea Virus), or they may be given a name that has meaning in the language of the first people afflicted with the virus (e.g. Onyonyong Virus). The naming conventions for viruses are actually quite complicated, and have only recently begun to be simplified by a taxonomy that is based upon the type of nucleic acid, structure of the virion, and replication scheme.
Because viruses are not considered organisms, scientists do not use traditional binomial nomenclature to name them. Currently, scientists name viruses in a variety of ways. Some viruses, such as the polio virus, are named after they disease they cause. Other viruses are named for the organisms they infect. The tobacco mosaic virus, for example, infects plants in the tobacco family. Scientists named the west nile virus after the place in Africa where it was first found. Sometimes, scientists name viruses after people. The Epstein-Barr virus, for example was named for the two scientists who first identified the virus that causes the disease known as mononucleosis, or mono.
So here's the ways.
1. Named after the disease they cause
2. Named for the organisms they infect
3. Named after the place where it was first found
4. Named after people
CREDITS TO: NORTH CAROLINA 8TH GRADE PRENTICE HALL SCIENCE EXPLORER
