Cap Snatching
We thought the next most likely pandemic threat might be the flu, not a cold. Like a lot of nasty viruses, influenza is an RNA virus. When it gets into the cell the influenza A virus (IAV) begins transcribing its own RNAs. The first thing it does is grab the 5' ends from random cellular pre-mRNAs - a process called cap-snatching. Why?
Resources
De Vlugt et al, 2018, Insight into Influenza: A Virus Cap-Snatching17/8/20