retrovirus (n.)youdaoicibaDictYouDict[retrovirus 词源字典]
1977, earlier retravirus (1974), from re(verse) tra(nscriptase) + virus. So called because it contains reverse transcriptase, an enzyme that uses RNA instead of DNA to encode genetic information, which reverses the usual pattern. Remodeled by influence of retro- "backwards."[retrovirus etymology, retrovirus origin, 英语词源]