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Scientific opinions differ on whether viruses are a form of life or organic structures that interact with living organisms. [11] They have been described as "organisms at the edge of life", [ 10 ] since they resemble organisms in that they possess genes , evolve by natural selection , [ 33 ] and reproduce by creating multiple copies of ...
Viral infections can cause disease in humans, animals and plants. In healthy humans and animals, infections are usually eliminated by the immune system, which can provide lifetime immunity to the host for that virus. Antibiotics, which work against bacteria, have no impact, but antiviral drugs can treat life-threatening infections. Those ...
Viruses infect all life forms; therefore the bacterial, plant, and animal cells and material in the gut also carry viruses. [6] When viruses cause harm by infecting the cells in the body, a symptomatic disease may develop. Contrary to common belief, harmful viruses may be in the minority, compared to benign viruses in the human body.
Unlike viruses, they are living organisms that can live and reproduce on their own. The vast majority of bacteria don’t hurt us, and many – like the ones that live in our gut and help digest ...
Different elements can combine to form compounds such as water, which is fundamental to life. [32] Biochemistry is the study of chemical processes within and relating to living organisms . Molecular biology is the branch of biology that seeks to understand the molecular basis of biological activity in and between cells, including molecular ...
"Viruses can jump between different species via the same modes of transmission that apply to humans, including direct contact with infected fluids, or getting bitten by other species, amongst ...
Viruses infect all forms of life, including animals, plants, fungi, bacteria and archaea. They are found in almost every ecosystem on Earth and are the most abundant type of biological entity, with millions of different types, although only about 6,000 viruses have been described in detail. Some viruses cause disease in humans, and others are ...
Thus, an argument that viruses should be classed as living organisms is their ability to undergo evolution and replicate through self-assembly. However, some scientists argue that viruses neither evolve nor self-reproduce. Instead, viruses are evolved by their host cells, meaning that there was co-evolution of viruses and host cells.