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This is cool but doesn't say much about the definition of life IMO. They're obligate parasites. This isn't a new category. They're still eating stuff from their
by andrewflnr 11mo ago
This is cool but doesn't say much about the definition of life IMO. They're obligate parasites. This isn't a new category. They're still eating stuff from their host (probably, given the caveat later in the article), and still using it to replicate, it's just a more limited diet.
- flobosg 11mo ago> They're still eating stuff from their host They aren’t. Apart from DNA replication, transcription, and translation, their genome lacks elements encoding for even the most simple metabolic pathways.
- andrewflnr 11mo agoThen where are they getting the materials to replicate? Where are they getting the energy? Magic? No, they're pulling pre-metabolized materials and energy from the host.
- flobosg 11mo agoWhich is exactly what I said.