EVERYDAY SCIENCE

Detailed explanation-1: -Viruses cannot reproduce outside the host because these organisms do not have the metabolic machinery of their own. Viruses do not have cytoplasm and enzymes required for reproduction.

Detailed explanation-2: -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.

Detailed explanation-3: -Specifically, they are pieces of genetic material (RNA or DNA) contained in a special coating of proteins called capsids. Viruses cannot replicate unless absorbed by cells in our body. Once a virus is outside the body, its capsid starts to degrade, and the more degraded its capsid is, the less likely it is to survive.

Detailed explanation-4: -Viruses also lack the properties of living things: They have no energy metabolism, they do not grow, they produce no waste products, and they do not respond to stimuli.

Detailed explanation-5: -A virus is a tiny, infectious particle that can reproduce only by infecting a host cell. Viruses “commandeer” the host cell and use its resources to make more viruses, basically reprogramming it to become a virus factory. Because they can’t reproduce by themselves (without a host), viruses are not considered living.