EVERYDAY SCIENCE

Detailed explanation-1: -Bacteriophages, also known as phages, are viruses that infect and replicate only in bacterial cells.

Detailed explanation-2: -A bacteriophage attaches itself to a susceptible bacterium and infects the host cell. Following infection, the bacteriophage hijacks the bacterium’s cellular machinery to prevent it from producing bacterial components and instead forces the cell to produce viral components.

Detailed explanation-3: -Bacteriophages are viruses infecting bacterial cells. Since there is a lack of specific receptors for bacteriophages on eukaryotic cells, these viruses were for a long time considered to be neutral to animals and humans.

Detailed explanation-4: -Although generally considered as prokaryote-specific viruses, recent studies indicate that bacteriophages can interact with eukaryotic organisms, including humans.

Detailed explanation-5: -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.