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What is a Virus?
The flu, COVID, smallpox - these viruses make you sick, but what exactly are they? Watch this video to find out, or read our explanation below!
Viruses Replicate Inside of Cells
Bacteria are as small as your cells, but viruses are even tinier. There’s lots of different kinds, but the one thing they all have in common is that they replicate inside of a living thing’s cells. This usually kills the cell, which is why viruses can make you sick.
Viruses Hijack Cell Production
Viruses are really simple - so simple, that scientists often don’t consider them to actually be alive. They don’t eat, or perform any chemical reactions inside their bodies like every other organism. All they do is make new viruses, and they do this by replacing the host cell’s DNA with their own. When that happens, instead of making the proteins the host organism needs, the cell becomes a virus-making factory, making nothing but viruses until it finally dies.
How Vaccines Work
Your body has lots of natural defenses against viruses. When your immune system sees enough of a particular virus, it starts to produce antibodies specific to that virus. Antibodies are proteins that bind to a virus and make it stop working. Vaccines are basically weakened or dead viruses or virus parts that can’t make you sick, but do allow your immune system to start producing antibodies, so that when the real virus shows up, your body is already prepared to fight it off.
Virus Facts for Kids
Got virus questions? We’ve got virus answers!
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Yes, you can. After a while, your body stops producing as many antibodies as before, which can allow a virus to reinfect you. Usually, though, your immune response is faster the second time, resulting in a less severe infection.
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Yes! Vaccines are one of the safest and most effective medical treatments available. Since vaccine treatment was invented over 200 years ago, vaccines have saved countless lives and eradicated diseases like polio and smallpox.
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COVID-19 was first reported to the WHO (World Health Organization) on December 31, 2019.
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COVID-19 is caused by a virus.
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COVID is an abbreviation for “coronavirus disease.” The 19 stands for 2019, the year in which it was discovered. COVID-19 is, technically speaking, the name of the disease, not the virus.
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A coronavirus is a type of virus, named for their appearance. “Corona” means “crown,” and coronavirus’ outer layers are covered with spiky proteins, sort of like the spikes of a crown.
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Buckle up for some technical naming fun:
-COVID-19 is the disease caused by a virus named SARS-CoV-2
-SARS stands for Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, and is both a symptom caused by certain types of coronaviruses, as well as a means of naming those viruses
-Sometimes, “SARS” is colloquially used to refer to an outbreak of SARS in 2003 caused by a virus named SARS-CoV. That virus is similar to the virus that causes COVID-19, which is why that virus is named SARS-CoV-2, though they are not the same.
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