Question

When a virus infects a bacterial cell, often new viruses are assembled and released when the host bacterial cell is lysed. If these new viruses go on to infect new bacterial cells the host cells may not be lysed. What is the most plausible explanation for this? When a virus infects a bacterial cell, often new viruses are assembled and released when the host bacterial cell is lysed. If these new viruses go on to infect new bacterial cells the host cells may not be lysed. What is the most plausible explanation for this? The bacterial cell must be resistant to infection by the virus. The virus has entered the genome of the bacterial cell and is in the lysogenic stage. The virus carries genes that confer resistance to the host bacterial cell. The host bacterium couples the viral infection with transformation.

Answer 1

The correct answer is: The virus has entered the genome of the bacterial cell and is in the lysogenic stage

Lytic cycle and lysogenic cycle are types of a bacteriophage’s life cycle.

Lytic cycle can be divided in stages:

• Attachment-viruses binds to the receptor on the surface of bacterial cell, usually it uses tail for the attachment

• Entrance-virus injects its genome material (DNA or RNA) into bacteria cell

• Replication and protein synthesis-virus uses mechanism of bacteria to replicate its genome and produce proteins. As a consequence, a huge number of new viruses are formed

• Lysis- viruses express protein for the bacterial lysis (bacterial cell expand and burst) and hundreds of new phages are released.

Lysogenic cycle is different: bacteriophage’s genetic material-prophage, integrates into the host bacterium's genome or forms circular replicon in the bacterial cytoplasm. Bacterium continues to live and reproduce normally but prophage can be transmitted to daughter cells.