Viruses are best described as what?

• A. They are living organisms that multiply independently
• B. They are not living and require a living cell to multiply
• C. They are bacteria
• D. They can replicate without a host cell

Answer: (B)

Viruses are not living on their own and need a living cell to multiply. They don’t carry out metabolic processes or reproduce outside a host. Instead, they’re just genetic material wrapped in a protein coat (and sometimes a lipid envelope) that must hijack a host cell’s machinery to make more copies. Because of this, they’re considered non-living particles outside a cell and obligate intracellular parasites once inside a host. The other statements imply that viruses can reproduce independently, are living cellular organisms, or can replicate without a host, which isn’t how viruses operate.