They can infect animals, plants, fungi, and even bacteria.
Sometimes a virus can cause a disease so deadly that it is fatal. Other viral infections trigger no noticeable reaction.
A virus may also have one effect on one type of organism, but a different effect on another. This explains how a virus that affects a cat may not affect a dog.
Viruses vary in complexity. They consist of genetic material, RNA or DNA, surrounded by a coat of protein, lipid (fat), or glycoprotein. Viruses cannot replicate without a host, so they are classified as parasitic.
They are considered the most abundant biological entity on the planet
During this phase, they are roughly one-hundredth the size of a bacterium and consist of two or three distinct parts:
genetic material, either DNA or RNA
a protein coat, or capsid, which protects the genetic information
a lipid envelope is sometimes present around the protein coat when the virus is outside of the cell
Viruses do not contain a ribosome, so they cannot make proteins. This makes them totally dependent on their host. They are the only type of microorganism that cannot reproduce without a host cell.
After contacting a host cell, a virus will insert genetic material into the host and take over that host's functions.
After infecting the cell, the virus continues to reproduce, but it produces more viral protein and genetic material instead of the usual cellular products.
It is this process that earns viruses the classification of parasite.
Viruses have different shapes and sizes, and they can be categorized by their shapes.
These may be:
- Helical: The tobacco mosaic virus has a helix shape.
- Icosahedral, near-spherical viruses: Most animal viruses are like this.
- Envelope: Some viruses cover themselves with a modified section of cell membrane, creating a protective lipid envelope. These include the influenza virus and HIV.
- Other shapes are possible, including nonstandard shapes that combine both helical and icosahedral forms.
No comments:
Post a Comment