The body is a multi-cellular organism made up of about 100 trillion cells. These cells are fairly complicated machines. Each has a nucleus, energy production equipment, etc. Bacteria, on the other hand, are single-celled organisms that are much simpler. They do not even have a nucleus. They are perhaps 1/100th the size of a cell.
Bacteria
are independent organisms able to eat and reproduce on their own. They are like
fish swimming around in the ocean of your body. Under certain conditions
bacteria reproduce very quickly: One bacterium divides into two separate
bacteria perhaps once every 20 to 30 minutes. At that rate, one bacterium can
become millions in just a few hours. Bacteria
are slightly larger than viruses and are made up of a single cell. They are very
simple organisms, and most can replicate outside other cells. They are
virtually everywhere.
A
virus
is not alive. The virus particle is nothing but a fragment of Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA) wearing a
protective coat. The virus connects with a cell, attaches itself to the cell
wall then injects its DNA (and maybe a few enzymes) into the cell. The virus's
DNA uses the machinery inside the living cell to create new virus particles.
Eventually the hijacked cell dies at which point it bursts freeing the new
virus particles. Sometimes, the viral particles may bud off the cell so it can
remain alive. In either case, the virus uses a cell like a factory. Viruses are very small infectious agents that can only
replicate inside other living cells.
One difference between bacteria and
a virus is size. Viruses are smaller. Another difference is how they work. A
virus only works by invading a cell within an organism and taking over that
cell's machinery to reproduce itself. By itself, it doesn't contain all ability
to do everything it needs to survive and replicate. It essentially has to
parasitize that other cell. Most of the time when we there is mild illness, it’s
a viral infection. Most sore throats, all "colds," bronchitis, flu
and upset stomachs are due to viruses. Some pneumonia, ear infections, skin
infections and bladder infections are caused by bacteria. Meningitis,
pneumonia, diarrhea and others can be caused by either. There are bacteria that
can kill you, but there are also viruses that can kill as well.
How do you treat viral illnesses
versus bacterial infections? It depends on the virus or bacteria. You treat
bacterial infections with an antibiotic. You treat viral infections with an
antiviral. Some infections don't need treatment at all, and for many viruses we
don't have very effective therapy. There are three primary dangers of
antibiotic misuse or overuse. No. 1 is cost: Drugs are expensive, and anything
spent on unnecessary meds is at best, a waste of money.
No. 2 is side effects: All drugs
have toxic side effects. If it is unnecessary, then it isn't worth taking a
chance of an adverse effect. No. 3 is the selection of bacteria that are
resistant to antibiotics. Once drugs are widely used, the bacteria develop
resistance to those antibiotics. A drug may become not useful. We have this now
with some staphylococcus and enterococcal organisms where there are now very
few drugs that can be used.
“Love is like a virus. It can happen to
anybody at any time.”
(Maya Angelou) [i]
[i] Sources used:
·
“DNA” from Wikipedia
·
“What
is the difference between bacteria and viruses?”by Mehemet Oz
·
“What is the difference between viruses and bacteria?” BY MARLA VACEK BROADFOOT
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