Practice question · Select all that apply
Which statements about viruses are correct?
Hints
- Three describe the viral condition; one describes prokaryotes.
- Binary fission requires a full metabolism, which viruses do not have.
Show the answer
- A. They contain genetic material and a protein coat
- B. They replicate only inside a host cell
- D. They lack ribosomes of their own
Why
Viruses have genes and a coat but no ribosomes and no metabolism, so they can only replicate by commandeering a host. Binary fission is prokaryotic reproduction and requires machinery viruses simply lack.
Practise The First Cells and Endosymbiosis
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