Virus
Poliovirus
Enterovirus of paralytic poliomyelitis
POH-lee-oh-VY-rus
High-yield clue
Fecal-oral enterovirus that can destroy anterior horn motor neurons and cause asymmetric flaccid paralysis is the core clue.
Overview
A small non-enveloped positive-sense RNA enterovirus that spreads fecal-orally and, in a minority of infections, targets anterior horn motor neurons to cause flaccid paralysis; a landmark vaccine-preventable disease.
Classification
- RNA virus
- Positive-sense single-stranded RNA
- Non-enveloped icosahedral
- Family Picornaviridae, Enterovirus C
Lab & identification clues
- Enterovirus classification concept
- Stool and CSF detection vocabulary
- Three serotype framing
- Anterior horn motor-neuron tropism concept
Associations
- Poliomyelitis with asymmetric flaccid paralysis
- Fecal-oral transmission epidemiology
- IPV (inactivated) vs OPV (oral live) vaccine history
- Global eradication effort framing
Commonly confused with
- Coxsackievirus
- Enterovirus D68
Your notes
Original student-study summary. Sources checked: OpenStax Microbiology 2e, NCBI Bookshelf Medical Microbiology, and CDC topic pages where applicable; reviewed 2026-06. Educational only; no diagnosis, treatment, dosing, or specimen-handling guidance.