Why Viruses Aren't Living — NEET Biology
📚 Practice ConceptAll of us who have suffered the ill effects of common cold or 'flu' know what effects viruses can have on us, even if we do not associate it with our condition. Viruses did not find a place in classification since they are not considered truly 'living', if we understand living as those organisms that have a cell structure. The viruses are non-cellular organisms that are characterised by having an inert crystalline structure outside the living cell.
Which of the following statements correctly describe the reasons for the exclusion of viruses from Whittaker’s five kingdom classification? S1: Whittaker's five-kingdom classification system included viruses in a separate kingdom due to their unique mode of nutrition. S2: Viruses are considered acellular organisms that possess an inert crystalline structure outside a living cell. S3: Inside a host cell, viruses take over the cellular machinery to replicate themselves, making them obligate intracellular parasites. S4: The absence of a typical cellular organization and metabolic machinery is the primary reason why viruses were not classified under any kingdom by Whittaker. S5: Viruses exhibit an independent metabolism and reproduce autonomously outside of host cells.
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