Question

is a virus considerd alive?

Answer 1

No, a virus is just a protein sheath that encases DNA - it cannot survive for long without a host, and cannot replicate without a host either, so therefore cannot be considered truly alive.

Answer 2

No because it needs to reproduce through a host.

Answer 3

so, if it's not alive, how can you kill it?

Answer 4

If you look a virus's characteristics they're almost like a living organisms', except that it can't reproduce itself. So, scientist put viruses in its own department. So it's almost a organism, but it's not. We are learning more about viruses even today.

Answer 5

so, if it's not alive, how can you kill it?

Answer 6

You don't actually kill it per se, what your body does is prevent it from infecting other cells by producing specific antibodies that connect to the virus' protein capsule to stop it from being able to adhere to a cell's receptors and infect it. Those virus+antibodies complexes are then captured in your body and destroyed.

Answer 7

Does Vitamin C really prevent viruses from taking a stronger hold in the body? How does this mechanism work?

Answer 8

no, it needs a host to reproduce

Answer 9

vitamin c improves your inmune sistem, thats why it helps to protect the infection because it makes the T-cells (which are the strong ones, the ones that fight the infection first) and the B-cells (which are "the smart ones that conect with the virus, studies it and then creates the anti-bodies to attack the virus) even stronger.... also viruses are not alive because the law of life says "all living things are formed by cells", the virus is not a cell because its made up with a nucleus (which contains RNA) and the capsule which is mainly proteine. they "reproduce" by infecting cells with the RNA and mutating the DNA of that cell.