Are Viruses Alive Essay, Research Paper
Are Viruses Alive?
By Bo Howes
The word virus means & # 8220 ; poi-son & # 8221 ; in Latin. Viruss are submicro-scopic intracellular parasites that consist of either RNA or DNA, and a protective coat of protein. It has caused infinite diseases in vari-ous beings. The term virus was foremost used in the 1890s to depict agents that caused diseases that were smaller than bacteriums. The ex-istence of viruses was established in 1892, when Russian scientist Dimity I. Ivanovsky discovered microscopic atoms subsequently known as the baccy mosaic virus.
Over the old ages, scientists have debated whether viruses are alive. Some scientists argue that the virus is exanimate. On the other manus, other scientists argue that viruses are lifeforms and should be classified into a land. However, many sci-entists have agreed that things must hold seven features of life to be considered alive. The character-istics of life are all living things are composed of cells, all beings
are organized at cellular and molecular
degrees, energy usage, and response to the environment, growing, reproduc-tion, and version.
From research and observa-tion, scientists have found that vi-ruses can execute some of the life processes. They found that viruses have organisation, the ability to re-produce, and versions. First, they found that viruses are by and large organized and composed of a nu-cleic acid nucleus, either RNA or DNA, surrounded by protein. Following, they found that viruses could reproduce. It does non reproduce by sexual or nonsexual production, but by shooting its familial stuff into the karyon of a life cell. Finally, they found out that viruses have versions. They have the ability to mutate into different strains to defy semisynthetic drugs.
In short, these are some positions and facts about the virus. To this twenty-four hours, scientists are still ferociously debating whether viruses are alive. Should we see them alive since they perform some life processes or merely see them lifeless?
