Viruses Are A Nuisance For Organisms Alike

The argument on whether viruses are considered living or dead has been debated in science for years. While this topic has been extensively researched, a conclusion has yet to be reached. However, from my own research, I concluded that viruses are non-living. To better understand this topic, I will discuss cell theory, the differences between a prokaryote and a eukaryote cell, and the structures and functions of a nucleus and cell wall organelles.

It is often argued whether viruses are living or not. Those who don’t believe that viruses are living generally base their opinion off of the fact that they do not follow the basic definition of “life”. They do not carry out life-sustaining functions on their own like normal organisms. On the other side of the argument, some believe that viruses are in fact, living beings, which is where I rest my opinion.

Chickenpox is a viral disease caused by the Varicella-zoster virus which is a DNA virus that is a member of the herpesvirus group. The virus undergoes a lysogenic cycle in which the virus replicates its DNA to make new virus particles. The varicella-zoster virus is spherical in shape.

After looking at many articles I believe that viruses are not alive. Even though in the beginning I believed they were. For an object to be alive it needs to have certain characteristics such as being able to: grow, develop, have a purpose, reproduce, adapt, and have cells. A living thing could reproduce which means they would make offspring. Viruses don't have the ability to grow and develop on their own. Viruses don’t have the ability to reproduce on their own without the help of a keeper

Some viruses also have an outer bag of lipo-protein called an envelope. After a virus attaches to a living cell, it either enters the cell to release the genetic information, or, the virus injects the information through the cells outer lining. Thus changing the cells natural functions and forcing the cell to spend its energy to create copies of the virus. The cell will go on making copies of the virus until the cell is used up and dies. The virus then leaves the dead cell and invades a nearby cell and the process starts all over. There are five types of human herpes virus: Varicella zoster which causes chickenpox, Epstein Barr virus which causes infectious mononucleosis, cytomegalovirus which can cause cytomegalic inclusion disease in infants, and herpes simplex viruses 1 and 2.

In “Study Adds to Evidence that Viruses are Alive,” Professor Caetano-Anolles and his members argues that viruses are considered to be alive due to the founding of new evidences that support about it. They did a research and experiment to prove their claim. Others say that viruses are not “alive” because they lack many of the properties that scientists associate with living organisms. That they don’t have their own machinery for reproducing and they can only take over the machinery of cells, turning them into virus factories. Caetano-Anolles argues that viruses are alive, they used logos to support and give evidences to their claims. They argued that viruses are alive through their shapes and sizes, genetic structure and the means of their reproducing.

"Whatever does kill us can make us stronger" because our ancestors possibly died from a lot of these viruses that are helping us today. Think about the possibly of the black plaque, yellow fever or even smallpox could be buried deep into our genetic codes slowly changing our DNA to benefit Mankind in years to come. According to the article “DNA from an ancient virus, it seems, has now become a vital part in fighting new viruses.” Does this mean the viruses that kill thousands of people, could actually serve a purpose for us today? The human body is a very complex organism, but this theory applies to more than just

Throughout time the definition of ‘alive’ has changed, so it’s not possible to determine a specific meaning for the word. Among many other explanations, being alive is known as being alert and active. Viruses are small infectious agents, which are capable of infecting all kinds of life forms such as animals, plants and microorganisms to name a few. Viruses are very small in size, measuring at 30nm in diameter and lacking internal membranes. Viruses contain a protective, protein coat known as a capsid, which encases nucleic acid (either RNA or DNA). About five thousand viruses have been identified by scientists, among the millions that exist. Viruses exist as independent particles known as virons, varying in icosahedral, enveloped, complex

A virus depends on the host’s energy to stay alive and needs the host to be part of a living organism. The word virus comes from the Latin words of poison or toxic. Sense viruses don’t leave any fossil remains it’s hard to trace them over time.

Zimmer informs that this viral DNA come from retroviruses. If the retrovirus ends up infecting an egg or sperm, the DNA can possibly be passed down to the next generation and the next like a chain effect. These endogenous retroviruses call make their own protein and can reproduce. They can have cells to make copies of DNA, which become back into the cell’s genome. A single infection can lead up to making hundreds of copies of itself. The protein causes the cells to behave in a “suspiciously cancer-like way”. From the scientist who have been examining this protein and the way it behaves, it is found to support their hypothesis while still gaining more information as the research goes on. These viruses may be raising their odds of being passed down to the generations to

Ugh, this pesky human bounces around to much. I just wish she would eat or drink something already, I'm starving and my mouth is dry. I guess my host has not noticed me yet, or she wouldn't be at gymnastics. Soon enough I will be making her feel tired, gassy, nauseous, in pain, and even have a rash. Yesterday a virus came in and tried to infect my host, but I told the immune system that someone stuck in now the virus is gone and the host is healthy (which is great for me considering the host expenses in my benefit). I am much like roundworm and tapeworm but not as severe. I was transmitting to my host Emily by her dog, he was eating raw meat. I was not getting enough food from her dog. Uh oh, we at the doctors and they just prescribed her

They exist around the world and cause diseases in different types of animals and human. Poxvirus infections usually cause the formation of lesions, skin nodules, or a rash. Examples of poxviruses are smallpox, chickenpox, and monkeypox infections. Poxviruses replicates in the cytoplasm unlike other DNA viruses. Intracellular virion (IMV) particles bind to unknown receptors and fuse the cell membrane. Extracellular enveloped virion (EEV) particles bind to unknown receptor(s) and are endocytosed into the cell. The viral core particle which contains the genome and other enzymes including viral DNA – dependant RNA polymerase are released into the cytoplasm. Early genes are transcribed and translated as soon and the core particle enters into the cytoplasm of the cell. The core particle moves to the outside of the nucleus. And the viral nucleoprotein complex which included the viral genome is released. At this step the viral genome is replicated as a concatemer and transcription and translation of intermediate genes takes place. The viral late genes are then transcribed and translated.” Concatemeric intermediates are resolved into linear double-stranded DNA and packaged with late viral proteins into immature virions (IV). IVs mature into IMVs via a un described mechanism which may include processing of the IV through the Golgi apparatus. The IMVs are transported to the periphery of the cell where they are released

Viruses are not usually considered living things because they lack characteristics of living things. Viruses are biological particles composed of nucleic acid and a protein coat. Viruses are not alive and should not be considered a living organism. The reasons include that a virus cannot reproduce; they do not obtain energy, and technically cannot live without a host. Reproduction is one of the biggest essentials of life. Also if an organism cant obtain or make energy it also is classified as non-living. If a virus has no host then it has no ability to reproduce or to live. Furthermore a virus should not be considered a living organism because it lacks these traits.

Practitioners generally administer antiviral drugs that fight off infection either by preventing the virus’s capability to replicate or by reinforcing the body’s immune response to better aid in combating the infection. There are a number of various classes of drugs in the antiviral family, and each is utilized for a particular kind of viral infections. Antiviral drugs are now accessible to treat a number of viruses, consisting of influenza, HIV, Herpes, and Hepatitis B and C. Despite mechanisms that are used to combat viruses, they go through metamorphoses over time and build up a resistance against antiviral

The protective capsid helps the virus escape detection and destruction during the invasion of the host. When the virus reaches the target cell, biochemical reactions between the capsid and cell wall allow the virus to latch on and inject its genome into the cell’s interior. Once inside, the viral genetic material insinuates itself into the host’s DNA or RNA. In an efficient feat of natural bioengineering, the host cell’s genetic machinery now does the rest of the work for the virus. The cell, which had already been making copies of its own genome, now also replicates that of the virus. Coded within the viral material is the blueprint for making more copies of the viral genome. Further instructions command the production of capsids and directions for assembly of new viruses. After the host cell becomes engorged with viruses, it explodes, sending the new