Illustrated by superb electron microscope images, combined with detailed explanations in accessible language, this book delves deep into the world of pathogenic viruses: you will learn about their morphology, their ingenious ways of invading host cells, and how they exploit the machinery of infected cells to their advantage to replicate and spread on a large scale. This book draws fascinating portraits of viruses by highlighting major infectious diseases responsible for the great epidemics that have shaped human history, such as smallpox, Spanish flu, measles, influenza, rabies, AIDS, COVID-19 and many others... And even if some of these viruses are the cause of particularly serious diseases, you can't help but be seduced by the images and aesthetics of natural viral structures. Translation of this updated and extended English edition of the book "Portraits de virus - Voyage au coeur des cellules", originally published in French by the Presses Universitaires François Rabelais (PUFR), was facilitated by artificial intelligence. The content was later revised by the author for accuracy.