Rameia's Virus Argumentation

Should Viruses be Considered Living Things?

Rameia Ramsey

          In order to be classified as a living thing there are seven characteristics that must be possessed by an object. A living thing must be composed of cells, there must be different levels of organization, it must use energy, it must respond to its environment(stimuli), it must grow and develop, it must be able to reproduce, and it must be able to adapt to its environment.  These seven characteristics make up a living organism.  Based off of these characteristics and the information provided in the data table I come to the decision that a virus should not be classified as a living thing.  A virus should not be classified as a living thing because they do not contain all of the properties that are associated with living things and would not be able to function properly without the aid of a host cell. 

          All living things must be composed of cells, a virus automatically violates this characteristic. A virus is a tiny bundle of genetic material that is carried in a protein shell called a capsid. Some viruses have an additional layer around the coat called an envelope that is made of a lipid. A virus in no shape or form is composed of cells. It is simply a bundle of DNA or RNA. This shows how a virus does not have all the characteristics needed to be a living thing

          A virus can also not be considered a living thing because it has no energy source.  On the data table the Influenza Virus and the Adenovirus are listed with having an energy source as none. Living things need an energy source to be able to take in energy and use it for maintenance and  growth. As a comparison on the chart listed is a plant called Elodea.  This plant uses the sunlight as its energy source. With the aid of sunlight this plant is able to carry out the photosynthesis in order to make itself food and help it grow and develop.  Viruses do not have an energy source which is why they rely on host cells to help them function. Host cells allow viruses to carry out their destructive behaviors. Since there is no actual source of energy aiding the virus in  developing and growing it is not a living thing.

          A virus will not respond to external stimuli which  makes it unfit to be a living thing. If we compare the Influenza Virus and the Adenovirus with another organism on the chart such as the Coriander Seeds we can see that a virus is not able to respond to stimuli. If the Coriander seed comes into contact with water or sun it will respond to that stimuli by growing. Living things will make changes in response to their environment but a virus does not change. Its form will always stay the same, without a host cell a virus won't do anything. Therefore it can not be classified as a living thing.

          Reproduction is not important for a living thing to survive by itself, but it must reproduce in order for a species to survive. Living things either reproduce sexually(joint of sex cells) or asexually(without the use of gametes) . Viruses can not reproduce by themselves, there needs to be a host cell for a virus to reproduce.  The Influenza Virus and Adenovirus use its host cell to survive. When those viruses enter its host cell the genetic material that it carries allows the virus to force the now infected cell to make copies of the virus. Without this host cell a virus can not reproduce to survive.  Other organisms on the chart such as dogs are able to reproduce sexually and create more offspring, if that one individual dog doesn't reproduce it will not harm it but if that one virus does not have a host cell it will not reproduce at all and become stagnant.

          Another reason why a virus should not be classified as a living thing is because it does not grow.  Living things grow through the process of cell division and cell enlargement.  As an organism gets larger the number of cells it contains increases. As I already established, viruses are not composed of cells, this means that they do not have the ability to grow.  A virus needs a host cell to grow, a virus by itself can not grow at all. As a comparison, the dog that is depicted in the chart is able to grow.  As the dog carries out its life cycle it grows and developed from a puppy into an adult dog. Viruses do not have the capability to grow and develop by itself, thus making a virus not a living thing because it lacks the ability to reproduce on its own.

          Viruses should not be considered a living thing because they lack many of the properties that make up a living organism.  As stated on the chart the Influenza Virus and he Adenovirus do not have an energy source, not respond to stimuli, can not reproduce without a host cell, and can not grow.  Without a host cell a virus can not do anything and is no harm or threat to anyone or anything. Its the host cell that allows the virus to function properly. Not possessing anyone of the characterizes makes something unfit to be living and the fact that a virus lacks several of these properties is proof that a virus should not be classified as a living thing.