What are Viruses and How do They Work?: Flipped Classroom Notes

*What is a virus?

.Viruses are common

.Almost all life has a virus specifically designed to infect it

.Viruses are much smaller than bacteria

.*Most scientists agree a virus is a complex chunk of organic matter that is able to replicate

*What is the structure of a virus?

.*Viruses are shells made of protein with a chunk of DNA or RNA inside

.They are really just a chunk of DNA or RNA

*How do viruses work?

.*Viruses attack cells and turn them into breeding grounds for the virus. They use them to produce the virus.

.*Uses outer protein code to bind to the outer membrane of the cell. The outer protein shell determines what cells the virus can attack. It is like a key and lock.

.*The virus uses a series of biological pathways to either have the cell accept the entire virus or accept portions of DNA or RNA to implement into the cell's genetic information.

*How do viruses replicate?

.*Once the cell is hijacked by the virus, it uses the cell to replicate the virus's DNA/RNA and create outer protein shells that can penetrate that of the same cell.

*What is bigger, a virus or bacteria?

.*Bacteria is much larger than viruses.

.Some scientists believe that the first multicelular lifeforms were born on account of a virus.

*What was difference between the Viral Tag game an the flipped classroom video?

.*During the tag game an immune system was involved. The video did not mention the immune system.

Analysis: A virus is, debatably, a non-living chunk of biomass, a shell made of protein containing specific sets of DNA or RNA, that replicates itself using cells found in different organisms. Different viruses target different cells in different organisms. Viruses, in the process of replicating itself, destroy the cell's primary functions. 

An Illustration of a Virus

What is a Virus? How do viruses work?