Search results
Viruses are small obligate intracellular parasites, which by definition contain either a RNA or DNA genome surrounded by a protective, virus-coded protein coat. Viruses may be viewed as mobile genetic elements, most probably of cellular origin and characterized by a long co-evolution of virus and host.
24 paź 2024 · All true viruses contain nucleic acid —either DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) or RNA (ribonucleic acid)—and protein. The nucleic acid encodes the genetic information unique for each virus. The infective, extracellular (outside the cell) form of a virus is called the virion.
The Baltimore Scheme recognizes seven classes of viruses. DNA viruses Class I: dsDNA. DNA viruses with a dsDNA genome, like bacteriophages T4 and lambda, have a genome exactly the same as the host cell that they are infecting. For this reason, many host enzymes can be utilized for replication and/or protein production.
Orthopoxvirus particles. A DNA virus is a virus that has a genome made of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) that is replicated by a DNA polymerase.
The infectious virus particles, or virions, are composed of proteins and are surrounded in some species of viruses by a lipid membrane, which is referred to as an envelope; the particles contain only one kind of nucleic acid, either DNA or RNA.
Viruses are much smaller than bacteria and consist of a single- or double-stranded nucleic acid (DNA or RNA) surrounded by a protein shell called a capsid; some viruses also have an outer envelope composed of lipids and proteins. They vary in shape.
Viruses can be extremely simple in design, consisting of nucleic acid surrounded by a protein coat known as a capsid. The capsid is composed of smaller protein components referred to as capsomers. The capsid+genome combination is called a nucleocapsid.
