3 ms·
I'm unclear why we are calling these a new class of life rather than just a new kind of virus. Their shape?
by brokensegue 2y ago
I'm unclear why we are calling these a new class of life rather than just a new kind of virus. Their shape?
- ababaian 2y agoI think this is the journalist playing at the idea that we don't have a universally accepted definitions of "life", "virus", "viroids", "mobile genetic elements", "plasmids", or the other words that describe what I view as the agents of evolutionary games. It is kind of catchy way to raise that conversation though eh!
- throwup238 2y agoViruses have capsids which are protein shells that envelop them. These are just bare RNA strands, which are considered viroids.