Question

Differentiate virus from viroid.

Answer 1

Virus is an obligate intracellular parasite which can reproduce only by invading and taking over other cells as they lack the cellular machinery for self reproduction.They have a protein coat.The genetic material may be either DNA or RNA.They can infect plants, animals and bacteria.

Viroids are the smallest infectious pathogens known. They are composed solely of a short strand of circular, single-stranded RNA that has no protein coating.The genetic material is RNA.They can infect only plants.