Question

What is the first virus in the world?

Answer 1

Virus:

1. Viruses are microscopic organisms that are composed of genetic material and a protein coat called a capsid.
2. It lacks genetic machinery to replicate its genetic content and hence employs the host machinery to propagate instead.
3. Dmitri Ivanowsky (1892) recognized certain microbes as a causal organism of the mosaic disease of tobacco.

Tobacco Mosaic Virus :

1. Tobacco Mosaic Virus (TMV) is the first virus in the world.
2. These were found to be smaller than bacteria because they passed through bacteria-proof filters.
3. They are inert outside their specific host cell.
4. Viruses are obligate parasites.