Getting sick and tired of Covid-19? While it is still important to mask up and practice social distancing, the distribution of vaccines offers hope that even if the world has changed forever, there will be a return to at least some sense of normalcy in the near future. In the meantime, since we’re on the topic of viruses, why not take a few minutes to enjoy this list of 15 facts about viruses you might not know? We’ve got 15 of them to satisfy your thirst for knowledge!
1. Virus comes from the Latin word that refers to poison and other liquids that cause sickness. Considering how it makes us feel when we have a serious flu or cold, it makes perfect sense.
2. Viruses are not considered living organisms. Unlike plants, animals and other things considered alive, they are not made up of cells, do not convert a food source into energy, and do not function without a host.
3. Nonetheless, viruses do have certain characteristics that are consistent with living things, such as the ability to evolve through natural selection and reproduce. They contain genes as well.
4. Up until the late 19th century, it was assumed that every disease or condition was the result of bacteria, but a Russian microbiologist named Dmitry Ivanovsky argued that an infection that had inflicted tobacco plants must have come from something smaller. This was confirmed when he discovered the tobacco mosaic virus.
5. Another way in which some viruses behave like living things is the way in which they insert their DNA into a bacterium: through the pilus, a long tube that is akin to the male genitalia. Can somebody please explain how that isn’t proof that viruses are alive?
