What is a virus ?

 A virus is a small infectious microbe consisting of a segment of nucleic acid (either DNA or RNA) surrounded by a protein coat. It cannot replicate alone and must infect cells and use components of the host cell to make copies of itself. Viruses are so small that a microscope is necessary to visualize them, and they have a very simple structure. They can infect a variety of living organisms, including bacteria, plants, and animals. Viruses are not made up of cells, so they don’t have all the equipment that cells do to make more copies of themselves. Instead, they carry instructions with them and use a host cell’s equipment to make more copies of the virus. Viruses can cause a wide range of diseases in humans, such as the common cold, the flu, COVID-19, and HIV. They can be spread through droplets and particles that are breathed out by someone who has the infection, by touching surfaces or objects that have the virus on them and then touching your mouth, nose, or eyes, from the pregnant parent to the baby during pregnancy, through contaminated food or water, or by being bitten by an infected insect or animal.

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