AP BIOLOGY

Detailed explanation-1: -Bacteria can be infected by tiny viruses called bacteriophages (phages). Bacteriophages are so small they do not even have a single cell, but are instead just a piece of DNA surrounded by a protein coat.

Detailed explanation-2: -Phages, formally known as bacteriophages, are viruses that solely kill and selectively target bacteria. They are the most common biological entities in nature, and have been shown to effectively fight and destroy multi-drug resistant bacteria.

Detailed explanation-3: -To infect bacteria, most bacteriophages employ a ‘tail’ that stabs and pierces the bacterium’s membrane to allow the virus’s genetic material to pass through. The most sophisticated tails consist of a contractile sheath surrounding a tube akin to a stretched coil spring at the nanoscale.

Detailed explanation-4: -There are two primary types of bacteriophages: lytic bacteriophages and temperate bacteriophages. Bacteriophages that replicate through the lytic life cycle are called lytic bacteriophages, and are so named because they lyse the host bacterium as a normal part of their life cycle.

Detailed explanation-5: -There are three basic structural forms of phage: an icosahedral (20-sided) head with a tail, an icosahedral head without a tail, and a filamentous form.