facts about viruses

20 Things You Didn't Know About Viruses

• Viruses are not alive: They do not have cells, they cannot turn food into energy, and without a host they are just inert packets of chemicals.
• Viruses are not exactly dead, either: They have genes, they reproduce, and they evolve through natural selection.

1. What are 5 facts about viruses?
2. What are 4 examples of viruses?
3. What are some good things about viruses?
4. Why are viruses harmful?
5. Why are viruses dead?
6. How are viruses created?
7. Is virus a germ?
8. What diseases are viruses?
9. What was the first virus?

What are 5 facts about viruses?

Characteristics of Viruses

• They do not have an organized cell structure.
• They have no cell nucleus.
• They typically have one or two strands of DNA or RNA.
• They are covered with a protective coat of protein called the CAPSID.
• They are inactive when not inside a living cell, but are active when inside another living cell.

What are 4 examples of viruses?

Examples

• measles.
• rubella.
• chickenpox/shingles.
• roseola.
• smallpox.
• fifth disease.
• chikungunya virus infection.

What are some good things about viruses?

In fact, some viruses have beneficial properties for their hosts in a symbiotic relationship (1), while other natural and laboratory-modified viruses can be used to target and kill cancer cells, to treat a variety of genetic diseases as gene and cell therapy tools, or to serve as vaccines or vaccine delivery agents.

Why are viruses harmful?

The more harmful viruses are described as virulent. Viruses cause different diseases depending on the types of cell that they infect. Some viruses can cause lifelong or chronic infections where the viruses continue to reproduce in the body despite the host's defence mechanisms.

Why are viruses dead?

So were they ever alive? Most biologists say no. Viruses are not made out of cells, they can't keep themselves in a stable state, they don't grow, and they can't make their own energy. Even though they definitely replicate and adapt to their environment, viruses are more like androids than real living organisms.

How are viruses created?

Viruses may have arisen from mobile genetic elements that gained the ability to move between cells. They may be descendants of previously free-living organisms that adapted a parasitic replication strategy. Perhaps viruses existed before, and led to the evolution of, cellular life.

Is virus a germ?

A virus is the simplest of germs—it is nothing but genetic material encased in protein. Researchers debate whether a virus is even "alive." By itself, a virus can accomplish nothing—it needs to enter a living thing to perform its only function, which is to replicate.

What diseases are viruses?

What are viral diseases?

• Chickenpox.
• Flu (influenza)
• Herpes.
• Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV/AIDS)
• Human papillomavirus (HPV)
• Infectious mononucleosis.
• Mumps, measles and rubella.
• Shingles.

What was the first virus?

Abstract. Two scientists contributed to the discovery of the first virus, Tobacco mosaic virus. Ivanoski reported in 1892 that extracts from infected leaves were still infectious after filtration through a Chamberland filter-candle. Bacteria are retained by such filters, a new world was discovered: filterable pathogens ...