What are the differences between bacteria and viruses?

Question

What are the differences in structure, how they divide etc.
And and links to sites would be helpful.

Answer 1

Viruses are DNA surrounded by a protein capsule. They can't divide on their own, they need to inject their DNA on a cell, and the DNA forces the cell to make copies of the virus, then, the cell's membrane dissolves and it dies.
Bacteria are cells, they have a membrane and their DNA is inside a single circular chromosome. They divide on their own by mitosis, giving origin to 2 bacteria, but they can also recombine their DNA with other bacteria by forming a pili, take lose DNA from their surroundings and incorporate it to their chromosome or add DNA from a virus.

Answer 2

The first and most important distinction to make is that bacteria are cells, viruses are not.

Bacteria, being cellular can surivive on their own in the environment. Viruses cannot. They are purely parasitical in nature, and need to be in a host (hosts can be animal, plant or bacteria). This is why for most viruses close or direct contact with an infected person is needed to catch it - you can't catch HIV from a toilet seat, the virus will have died within a few seconds!!

Bacteria divide in a standard cellular way. This site isn't bad, with some nice pictures:
http://www.emc.maricopa.edu/faculty/farabee/biobk/BioBookmito.html

Viruses DO NOT DIVIDE, they replicate. They are made of simple DNA or RNA, and simple proteins. Most cells are capable of making these. So, when the virus infects a host cell, it uses the cell to make it's own proteins etc, and so produce more virus. This is a good site. It's got a dull layout, but the information is very good!
http://www.epidemic.org/theFacts/viruses/viralReplication.html

Answer 3

Bacteria can reproduce themselves without the need of host cells in contrast to viruses with require the latter for replication. Viruses do not have a cytoplasm as bacteria. Bacterial cytoplasm contain all the molecules and complex structures such as ribosomes etc. for making necessary proteins and other compounds required for living and reproduction. In contrast, the viral lifestyle is dependent on the compouds/stuctures provided by a host cell. Some viruses named bacteriphages are actually bacterial parasites which will only be able to multiply after infecting a bacterial cell.

Answer 4

Viruses -> Very smaller than bacteria (can be seen with powerful microscopes), they have a protein coating (like the first answer says) that surrounds the DNA in it, then they also have ways to attach to their prey. They can be in any shape and has to have a host to replicate. The viruses which hosts on bacteria are called Bacteriophages like the previous answer says.

Bacteria ->Smaller then cells (still need a microscope, but with more magnification than regular cells like amoeba), they contain more things like cytoplasm, DNA, and cell membrane, but they lack the nucleus. Most all of them are either spherical, rod, or spiral shapes and doesn't need a host to reproduce. These bacteria are very helpful, however, there are also harmful ones as well.

Answer 5

Bacteria may be spherical, rod, or spiral in structure. It contains nucleoid, cytoplasm, mesosomes, ribosomes and some cell inclusions It divides by budding, vegetative reproduction etc.
Viruses are non-living entities outside the host, but they behave as living inside host. They may be of various shapes. Viruses do not grow but bacteria can grow in their size. Viruses replicate only in the host cell. Where as bacteria can divide outside host also. Viruses use host cell machinery for their replication because it has no ability to do so.
Viruses are much smaller than bacteria.Viruses infecting bacteria are called as Bacteriophages.

Answer 6

Put simply, viruses are semi-alive, in that they can survive in extrememly adverse environments but still reproduce in a host cell. They actually 'hijack' the DNA or maybe RNA, I can't remember which, of a cell's nucleus and make loads of copies of their own pattern; hence they cause diseases. Thay are harder to kill than bacteria. Bacteria can reproduce inside our bodies or other sources of energy but they cannot utilise the DNA of another cell. Thay are primitive life forms and one of the oldest; they can adapt to many new conditions and soon become resistant to antibiotics, It is possible that viral particles came from outer space. Bacteria are singl;e celled organisms and divide and reproduce by simple cell division.

Answer 7

Forms that do not have a cellular organisation and therefore do not display all the major life attributes are termed acellular (non-cellular). Viruses, viroids and prions are acellular forms. They are technically ‘non-living’ because they do not contain metabolic machinery and cannot reproduce in the absence of living cells. Exceptionally, as obligate parasites capable of redirecting a host cell’s activities, viruses may be viewed as microorganisms at the interface of ‘non-living’ and ‘living’ try work out bateria