Differentiate viruses from bacteria

• Viruses consist of genetic material (DNA or RNA) surrounded by a protein coat called the capsid.
• Bacteria are cellular organisms that can reproduce independently through binary fission.
• viruses may seem to behave as living things, they are actually acellular, non-living particles. Viruses are not considered to be living organisms because they are incapable of carrying out all living processes.
• The factors that distinguish them as non-living are as follow:

  • are not made of cells.
  • obligate intracellular parasites.
  • can pass through filters
  • can't reproduce on their own
  • do not grow or undergo division
  • do not transform energy
  • lack machinery for protein synthesis - do not have enzymes
  • are so small that they can only be seen with an electron microscope