EVERYDAY SCIENCE

Detailed explanation-1: -Most biologists say no. 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-2: -Because they can’t reproduce by themselves (without a host), viruses are not considered living. Nor do viruses have cells: they’re very small, much smaller than the cells of living things, and are basically just packages of nucleic acid and protein.

Detailed explanation-3: -Since viruses are not made of cells, and do not use cells in any of their processes, they are not related to the cell theory. A virus is nothing more than a protein coat surrounding a piece of DNA or RNA.

Detailed explanation-4: -Unlike cells (e.g. bacteria, plant and animal cells), viruses contain either DNA or RNA, never both; the viral nucleic acid is either single or double stranded. Viruses with a DNA core are capable of surviving in the nucleus of the cell they infect, using the host’s biochemical machinery to replicate their DNA.