Is a virus a living thing?

Question

I know this question has no definate answer, but lets see what you have to say, and what your evidence to back it up is.

ClarissaM...

its all good, and a very intelligent answer.

Answer 1

There is no real answer to your question, it's really controversial.
The thing is, the basic unit of life is considered to be the cell, that being, every living thing is made up of cells. But viruses aren't! Still, they are capable of infecting a host, they possess DNA (or RNA) and they can introduce that nucleic acid in their hosts, making them replicate it for them and generating more viruses!

So it's up to you to consider all of this and decide what you think is the best answer, yes or no...

Answer 2

2

Answer 3

One of the basic characteristics/requirements of a living thing is that it needs to reproduce. Given that viruses do not reproduce outside of a host, they can not be considered living. On the other side, a virus would be considered a living thing if it is in a living host because it now has the needed resources to replicate and manipulate DNA.

Answer 4

The definition of a living thing comprehends the capacity of reproduction. Since virus depends on other living organisms to reproduce (e.g, bacterias, human cells etc), they're not considered a living thing.

But then one could ask... what about the so defined living things that can't even live without the help of other organisms? We human beings, for example, depend on the microorganisms that live in our digestive tract (gut flora). Without them, we're nothing! So what?

Tough question!

(sorry for any mistake, I have English as a second language).

Answer 5

Well, first you would have to dissect/analyze the definition of life.
Living things must be able to regulate their internal environment (homeostasis), which viruses cannot do.
Living things are composed of cells, but viruses are not.
Living things have metabolism and can produce energy from non living things, which viruses cannot do. In fact, metabolism is needed for homeostasis.
A living thing must be able to grow, but viruses do not grow, they are just put together like a machine, and don't grow.
A living organism must be able to adapt in response to its environment (like a plant growing towards sunlight), but viruses cannot adapt.
Living things respond to stimuli (like contracting when tuoched), which is one thing a virus may argueably be able to do. Viruses respond when they attach to a cell by injecting it's DNA/RNA.
And finally, a living thing must be able to reproduce. Viruses can reproduce by injecting its nucleic acid into a cell.
So out of some seven parts of the definition of life, the virus only fits two. That's not enough to be considered alive. It's more like a machine than anything else...

Answer 6

It's debated.

The way it was described to me in schooling makes it sound as though it's a living thing.

I think the real answer is "no", because it doesn't fit the definition. But if they've changed it in the past 14 years (I heard about the debate in sixth grade) you could have a more definitive answer out there.

Let's check the Wikipedia shall we? ....
It looks like the answer is basically the way I put it. Viruses don't fit the definition of "alive", but their behavior is very close, and it perplexes scientists.

Answer 7

It depends how you define "living thing".

One of the things that differentiates a virus from a "living thing" is that it can not reproduce by itself or another of its species. It needs a "host". No host no reproduction.

Another thing is that a virus can crystallize. If your living thing definition does allow crystallization then a virus is in. Otherwise is not.

Answer 8

Viruses affect living things but they are not free living organisms and so much so that they are not part of the five kingdom classification of known living things on earth. They do not have life processes but affect the life processes of the organisms that they infect. Although, they are composed of biochemical structures (nucleic acids) that mimic the core individuality of living things, they behave and affect living things like poisons do.
In humans, pathogenic viruses trigger cellular reactions that destroy the cells and others around the infected cells. Antibodies and cellular immunity act on them as foreign bodies. Luckily, humans can develop immunologic memory on many of them.

Answer 9

Define a living thing. One that multiplies, needs nourishment, responds to stimuli, and dies. Yes virus is aliving thing.

Answer 10

I do not consider a virus living, because it can not reproduce by itself and it doesn't grow (add biomass). It lacks all characteristics of other living things except for DNA/RNA.