Table of Contents
What is a Virion?
Virion – Explanation: A virion is a single, complete virus particle. It is typically a small, round, and symmetrical object, although some viruses are filamentous. Virions are typically composed of viral proteins and genetic material (either DNA or RNA).
Features of the Virion
The virion has a diameter of about 100 nm and composed of an icosahedral protein shell and a nucleic acid core. The shell is composed of 60 hexamers and 12 pentamers of the viral protein, and the core is composed of the viral genome. The capsid is extremely stable and resistant to environmental extremes. The virion is also infectious, meaning that it can invade a host cell and replicate.
Structure of Virion
The virion is a helical molecule of DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) and proteins. The DNA wound around a protein core, and the whole molecule surrounded by a lipid bilayer. This lipid bilayer, or envelope, derived from the host cell’s plasma membrane. The virion is thus a virus-like particle.
Difference Between Virus and Virion
A virus particle, also known as a virion, is a small, infectious agent that composed of genetic material (DNA or RNA) enclosed in a protective protein coat. Viruses are not technically alive, but they are able to replicate and spread, making them a major cause of human illness and death.
Viruses are different from other microorganisms, such as bacteria, because they cannot reproduce on their own. They must invade the cells of a living organism in order to replicate. Once inside a cell, the virus hijacks the cell’s machinery to produce more virus particles.
Viruses come in many shapes and sizes, but all share a common protein coat. The genetic material inside the virus can either DNA or RNA, but it always single-stranded.
Bacteria single-celled organisms that can reproduce on their own. They are different from viruses in several ways, including their size, shape, and the fact that they can survive outside of a host organism.
Similarities Between Virion and Virus
A virion is an infectious agent that is a single, self-replicating molecule of nucleic acid enclosed in a protein coat. While a virus is a microorganism that consists of a genome enclosed within a protein coat, and is smaller than a bacterium. Viruses not considered to be alive, as they are incapable of autonomous reproduction, but they able to infect living cells and hijack their cellular machinery in order to replicate.
