Why is bacteria considered a living organism and a virus not?

Question

Can you please tell me? You don't have to give me a complete, full, detailed explanation. Maybe just a few sentences or more telling me why. I hope that's not too much to ask. Thanks!!! =)

Answer 1

a virus cannot reproduce, on its own. Instead it must infect a host cell and use that cell's machinery (organells, enzymes, etc.) in order to procreate. Bacteria, on the other hand, can reproduce naturally without depending on the organelles of another organism.

It should be noted that in the science community this is currently heatedly debated and that this aspect of the current definition of "living" may change, sometime in the near future, to include viruses in the category of the living.

Answer 2

VIRUSES: What are They?

viruses (n.) Any of various simple submicroscopic parasites of plants, animals, and bacteria that often cause disease and that consist essentially of a core of RNA or DNA surrounded by a protein coat. Unable to replicate without a host cell, viruses are typically not considered living organisms.

American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language – Fourth Edition

NEW! Virus Animation
Learn about viruses through our new animated powerpoint presentation. Watch a phage invade a bacterium. Learn about how viruses take over a cell and multiply. Examine different virus structures and learn about the history of virology research.
http://www.cs.unc.edu/Research/nano/ed/powerpoint12-8-2003.zip


Are Viruses Living or Non-living?
This is a difficult question to answer because we have yet to define what it means to be living. Does having a DNA mean that it is living? Does having the ability to reproduce mean that it is living? Does needing food and metabolising mean that it is living?

Clearly, viruses are more complicated than chemical molecules. Yet, much simplier than the most basic single cell organism. Similar to organisms, viruses are made up of proteins and nucleic acid which are organic compounds. Some viruses have a lipid membrane. They evolve and mutate. A virus has the potential to reproduce with the aid of their host cell, but does not need energy to persist, i.e. does not need food.

So for now, depending on how YOU define living, a virus can be either living or non-living.

Virus Structure
Viruses are nucleic acid coated with proteins. The nucleic acid can be either RNA or ss-DNA or ds-DNA. The protein coat is typically an assembly of one to several protein subunits.

Answer 3

Um... well, I'm certainly no genius, but i do know that bacteria is considered a living thing because of its structure, its a single-celled oraganism. A virus is different because it isnt alive at all, it just affects parts of a living body to slow down its functions. Thats why bacterial infections can be treated and usually cured, because bacteria can die, but viral infections cant because they were never living. Vaccines can help with that. Hopefully i helped rather than confusing you.

Answer 4

Bacteria is considred an living organism because it shows signs of the 7 main charcteristics of life. (Homeostasis, Organization, Metabolism, Growth, Adaptation, Response to stimuli and, Reproduction). While bacteria shows all 7 viruses aren't classified as living because they don't actually self-reproduce they must use a host cell.

Answer 5

Well bacteria can reproduce by itself while a virus has to use an another oraganism after infecting the cell, it becomes into clone like replica. While bacteria is can reproduce and tends to be more complex than viruses.

Answer 6

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To be considered alive, something must satisfy seven basic criteria:- - Movement - Respiration - Sensitivity - Growth - Reproduction - Excretion - Nutrition* Bacteria meet all these criteria but viruses fail on all of them except reproduction (and even that has to be by 'hijacking' living cells) *NOTE: some people say that in addition to the seven criteria listed, a thing must also be cellular (i.e. be made up of cells) to be regarded as alive. But this is a false argument because it then requires a definition of a cell (part of that definition being that it is alive, creating a circular argument) and not all cells are the same - fungal cells, for example sometimes lack cell membranes, making them multi-nucleate whilst human red blood cells lack a nucleus (and DNA) altogether. This leaves us with a definition of a cell as being something like "a membrane containing some stuff", which is about as useless as you can get.

Answer 7

Viruses are composed of DNA or RNA and proteins. In order to reproduce, they hijack cells, bacteria for example, and their protein synthesis mechanisms (mRNA, ribosomes, tRNA, etc.). Thus, viruses lack the ability to divide, as living cells do, but certainly not to reproduce. Also, some viruses lack the peripheral mechanisms of cells, like photosynthetic organelles, while others do not and can extravagently bore a hole into the membrane of cells. Some people think that this excludes viruses from the fraternity of 'life,' and others do not. There is by no means a consenus as to whether viruses constitute life, nor whether this is important at all.

Answer 8

A living organism eats, deficates (produces waste), reproduces and dies. Bacteria does these acts.
A virus is a small container of DNA that latches onto a cell and injects itself into the cell causing it to duplicate its DNA and continue the process. A virus does not eat, does not "die" in the traditional sense but does replicate itself.

Answer 9

A bacteria is a living cell, a virus is just protein

Answer 10

a virus is a protein that must bond to a host organism and multiply and mutate.
bacteria is a cellular organism and is composed of organelles that make it function as a whole.