What is the difference between BACTERIA and VIRUSES?

As titled. Please give more details. Also, would cancer cells fell in any one of the two categories? And, is AIDS a virus or bacteria?

Thanks. But what is the definition of parasite then? A virus or a bacteria? or both?

- Firstly, both bacteria and viruses are micro-organsisms that enter the body and cause harm. there are good and bad micro-organsisms, but the disease cauing ones are called pathogens.

BACTERIA
- 10 micrometres (1 millionth of a cm) in size.
- they're microscopic, not made of cellulose and have no nucleus.
- they can be destroyed using antibiotics.
- they attack the body by entering through orafaces such as the mouth or cuts etc. they then multiply rapidly ad release toxins, making us ill (use binory fission).
- some examples of illnesses caused by bacteria are salmonella, cholera, typhoid, whooping cough, gonorrhoea.

VIRUSES
- much smaller than bacteria, they're one of the smallest organsisms known to man.
- they're microscopic, have no nucleus. they have a protein coat.
- they can only reproduce in other cells.
- once they've invaded the host cells, they multiply rapidly, causing the cells to burst. they then get into the airways and bloodstream.
- they can't be cured by antibiotics because they 'live' inside host cells.
- unlike bacteria, viruses contain DNA strands.
- some some diseases caused by viruses include flu, measles, HIV/AIDS, rubella, mumps, measles, tetanus, colds, chicken pox and shingles.

cancer cells wouldn't fall into either of these categories. cancer cells are simply cells of the body that have malfunctioned, therefore they multiply very very rapidly and cause a mass rather than being caused by a foreign organism or substance.

hope this helps.

AIDS isn't a virus or a bacterium it is an immune deficiency caused by the HIV virus.

There is a thought that some viruses can cause cancer, example is HPV (Human Papilloma Virus)

Bacteria do not use the host's cells to replicate themselves, viruses do.

Bacteria can be free living, viruses cannot

Most viruses are intracellular parasites, only a few bacterium are classed as this.

I hope this helps

a bacteria is bigger than a virus
a bacteria is singled celled like a virus, but a virus has all of its DNA in the cell loose....not in a nucleus
Also, a virus needs a living host to reproduce, unlike a bacteria.
HIV is a virus
cancer is not virus or baccteria...but mutated body cells, or ionised cells

Bacteria are complex porkayotic cells with large chromosomes. Viruses are much smaller, comprising mainly of a protein coat and within it a nucleic acid and perhaps a few enzymes.

Cancer cells belong to neither group. Cancer cells are cells in our body that have begun to replicate without cessation. They grow intolarge masses called tumors that can be potentially fatal.

AIDS is caused by the HIV (Human immuno-deficiency virus) virus.

Bacteria contain the genetic blueprint (DNA) and all the tools (ribosomes, proteins, etc.) they need to reproduce themselves. Viruses are moochers. They contain only a limited genetic blueprint and they don't have the necessary building tools. They have to invade other cells and hijack their cellular machinery to reproduce. Viruses invade by attaching to a cell and injecting their genes or by being swallowed up by the cell. Once inside a living cell, a virus replaces the cell's original DNA or RNA commands with its own genetic instructions. Those instructions are usually to make as many copies of the virus as possible. Once the individual cell has outlived its usefulness, it explodes and sends out thousands of copies of the original virus to other unsuspecting cells.

HIV is a virus.

Just wanted to add:
Viruses aren't generally considered to be living organisms. They can not reproduce on their own - they require a host cell's machinery for DNA replication (depending on the type of virus, either reverse transcriptase and/or DNA polymerase).

HIV is a retrovirus, meaning its genetic info is carried in RNA.

A parasite is an organism that feeds off another organism. A pathogenic bacterium can be considered a parasite because it invades and uses the cell as food to replicate itself.

In the case of the Virus, it's really up to what you believe. Viruses are not considered organisms because they don't have a cellular structure. Although, some people considers them alive since they have genetic material.

In my personal opinion, viruses are the ultimate parasites because they invade the cell and use its components to create copies of itself.

AIDS is a disease caused by a virus; Cancer is an uncontrolled replication due to other reasons. Some of them can be caused by viruses, Cervix cancer in women can be trigerred by Papiloma virus.

Hope this Helps