Question

Select the characteristic that makes viruses different than bacteria.

Answer 1

Bacteria: are unicellular microorganisms. They are typically a few micrometers long and have many shapes including curved rods, spheres, rods, and spirals.

Virus: is a sub-microscopic particle (ranging in size from 20–300 nm) that can infect the cells of a biological organism.

Answer 2

Eubacteria have a single circular chromosome, metabolize nutrients, independently reproduce through binary fission, and have a cell wall and plasma membrane. All Eubacteria have DNA in their chromosome and reproduce by copying this.

Viruses cannot reproduce on their own, have a different casing* around their DNA or RNA, and cannot metabolize nutrients.

*many biologists do not consider viruses to be a life form and therefore cannot have a cell wall.