2. What is it?? • A virusis basically a piece of nucleic acid (DNA or RNA) and a tough outer covering of protein Viruses are so small, they make bacteria look big!

3. Not Classified • Viruses DO NOT: • Reproduce • Use energy • Have cell parts like organelles or cytoplasm • Have a cell! • Therefore NOT LIVING  No Classification

4. What do they look like??

5. Types of Viruses • Some human viral diseases include: • HIV/AIDS • Chicken pox • Colds • Cold sores • Influenza (flu) • Hepatitis • Measles • Mumps • Polio • Rabies • Smallpox • Warts

6. What are they made of??

7. What do they do?? • Viruses may infect eukaryotic cells like ours or they could infect a bacteria! • First they attach to the host cell, • Then they inject their little piece of nucleic acid into the cell • That nucleic hijacks the cell’s DNA and tells it to make only virus parts!

8. Infected… • The result… • Sometimes infection will happen immediately • Some stay latentor dormantfor years

9. Offensive & Defense Offense/preventative Defense Antibodies – proteins that attach to virus and alert WBCs to eat it! Interferon– chemical interferes with the manufacture of virus parts in an infected cell and non-infected cell Immune Response • Vaccine– a weakened form of the virus • Vaccination– giving vulnerable animals a vaccine to alert the immune system to the structure of the pathogen • Good hygiene – practicing constant cleaning • People • Food

10. Virus Q&A