Question

Which of the followings cannot be used to culture viruses?

a) Cell culture
b) Agar plate
c) Embryonated eggs
d) Broth culture

Answer 1

Agar plate cannot be used to culture viruses as they require living host cells for replication, unlike cell culture, embryonated eggs, and broth culture.

Step-by-step explanation:

Among the options provided for culturing viruses, an agar plate cannot be used for this purpose because viruses require living host cells to replicate, and agar plates do not provide such cells. Viruses can be grown in vitro using cell culture methods, where they infect eukaryotic or prokaryotic host cells which can be cultured and grown (Figure 6.17(a)). Furthermore, viruses can be cultivated in vivo using embryonated eggs (Figure 6.18(a)), a method commonly used for producing vaccines like those for influenza. Similarly, a broth culture can be utilized, especially with bacteriophages that require a dense layer of bacteria to form plaques as they lyse the bacterial cells (Figure 6.17(b)).