VIRUSES Ch 2.3 in your book How A Virus Attacks Your Body (enlarged view of the head part of the virus) How A Virus Attacks Your Body http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rpj0emEGShQ

Which kingdom are viruses in?... They aren’t in a kingdom – THEY ARE NOT LIVING! the virus trying to get into an organism’s cell to reproduce itself Viruses can only reproduce by using the cells of a living organism.

So what can you do?... Viruses are actually in your cells, which is why medicines (like a pill that you swallow) don’t get rid of them. So what can you do?...

Vaccine – usually “a shot” of weakened virus particles You put this into your body BEFORE being exposed to the virus. It’s like giving your body’s immune system the other team’s playbook before the game. If the virus ever gets into you, your body will already know how to fight it. Antivirals – taken after the virus has gotten into your body They stop the virus from reproducing, and your immune system can do its job and make you better. There aren’t a ton of viruses that scientists have antivirals for yet….

Monera, Protista, and Fungi (they’re actually living, unlike a virus)

MONERA (bacteria) cytoplasm and DNA cell wall flagellum

Bacteria exist in 3 main shapes Cocci Bacilli Spirilli They are simple, single-celled organisms with a cell wall.

Where can you find bacteria?... EVERYWHERE!!

Only a SMALL percentage of bacteria are bad for us to have in our bodies. But when the bad ones get in… blech. Who likes being sick?

Why do you get a fever when you have a bacterial infection?...

So, your body can fight a bacterial infection. Is there also a “cure” (like a medicine) for bacterial infections?.... Of course, that’s what antibiotics are for – it literally means “against life” – KILL those bacteria!

PROTISTA Protozoans are one type (examples: amoeba and paramecium) They are single-celled, BUT the cells are complex They take in food from their surroundings They mostly reproduce by fission cilia pseudopodia

PROTISTA Euglena, Algae, and Plankton are another type They can photosynthesize They can be multi-celled (the cells are complex) They can reproduce asexually or sexually

FUNGI “A fungus is a spore-producing organism with complex cells and no chlorophyll.” Fungi are decomposers.

FUNGI

FUNGI cap gills stalk hyphae

Just like there are good and bad bacteria, there are good and bad protists and fungi, too (go to the medicine aisle in the grocery store – they sell lots of “anti-fungals”, for example)

(and it’s on your hand sanitizer) ANTI-MICROBIAL This is the name for all of the medicines that include antivirals, antibiotics, antifungals, etc. (and it’s on your hand sanitizer) Remember… anti = against microbe = small little thing (like a virus, bacteria, fungus spore, etc.)

So keep these things in mind: Viruses are not living things… but they are almost always bad There’s no drug to actually kill a virus – you just need to try to avoid getting it in the first place Bacteria, Protists, and Fungi can be microscopic, just like a virus – BUT, they are still WAY bigger than viruses They are also living, unlike viruses Most importantly, they are not all bad, like viruses. You have tons of them inside of you right now. It’s just that when you get a bad one in you, you’ll probably want to take an anti-microbial (like an antibiotic for strep throat, for example) to get rid of it