Positive-sense viral RNA is similar to mRNA and thus can be immediately translated by the host cell. Negative-sense viral RNA is complementary to mRNA and thus must be converted to positive-sense RNA by an RNA polymerase before translation. A picornavirus is a virus belonging to the family Picornaviridae.Click to see full answer. Just so, what is meant by positive and negative strand RNA viruses?There are two types of RNA viruses. Some are positive in that they have a “sense” strand of RNA (coded information about how to build proteins) as their genetic material. And other RNA viruses tare negative in that they have an “antisense” strand (the paired opposite of the coded information).Likewise, what does negative strand RNA mean? Medical Definition of Negative-strand RNA virus Negative-strand RNA virus: Also known as an antisense-strand RNA virus, a virus whose genetic information consists of a single strand of RNA that is the negative or antisense strand which does not encode mRNA (messenger RNA). Likewise, what is the difference between positive and negative strand RNA? Answer and Explanation: The difference between positive strand and negative strand of RNA is the polarity of the RNA. The negative is the complimentary strand for mRNA (messenger RNA) strand. This strand has to be converted to positive RNA by the RNA polymerase before translation takes place.What is the difference between RNA virus and retrovirus?A retrovirus is an RNA virus that is duplicated in a host cell using the reverse transcriptase enzyme to produce DNA from its RNA genome. The DNA is then incorporated into the host’s genome by an integrase enzyme. In most viruses, DNA is transcribed into RNA, and then RNA is translated into protein.