Question

Formulate a hypothesis as to why there is more than one mechanism of viral entry into host cells.

Answer 1

Viruses are the organisms that shows the characteristics of both the living and non living organisms. Virus if present outside the host acts as non living but when once takes entry in the host starts the replication machinery.

The virus has the different mechanism for the entry in to the host cell. Some virus may attack immune cells and some may disrupt the cell structure. The virus entry by the same mechanism will not allow the cell to show the protection against that particular virus mechanism. The strategy will not be exist in the cell.

Answer 2

Viruses are considered as the intracellular obligate parasites. They invade and hijack the machinery of the host cell in order to proliferate. They do not possess the tendency to metabolize or replicate without the help of the host cell.

The prime manner by which virus enters a host cell is by binding with the host cell and fusing its viral envelope with the cell membrane of the host cell so that it can transfer its genome within the host cell.

However, there is more than one mechanism of the entry of the virus into the host cells. As if all the viruses use a solitary mechanism of invading the cell, it would become easier for the cell to defend itself against the mechanism and it may not continue to prevail.