A bacteriophage, or phage for short, is a virus that infects bacteria. Like other types of viruses, bacteriophages vary a lot in their shape and genetic material.

The diagram above shows how these steps might occur for a virus with a single-stranded RNA genome. You can see real examples of viral lifecycles in the articles on bacteriophages …

A transmission electron micrograph of bacteriophages (bacterial viruses) infecting a bacterial cell. Image credit: "Phage" by Professor Graham Beards, CC BY-SA 3.0.

And you could imagine, as a virus goes from one species to the next, as it goes from Species A to B, if it mutates to be able to infiltrate these cells, it might take some-- it'll take the DNA that it …

One of the craziest-looking (to me, at least) is the Ebola virus, which has a long, thread-like structure that loops back on itself. A more "standard-looking" virus, chikungunya, is shown …

The viruses that infect bacteria are called bacteriophages. Bacteriophages, like other viruses, are the pirates of the biological world—they commandeer a cell's resources and use them to make …

Bacteria are very diverse in form, so not every type of bacterium will have all of the features shown in the diagram. Most bacteria are, however, surrounded by a rigid cell wall made out of …

Introduction Have you ever wondered why a different strain of flu virus comes around every year? Or how HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, can become drug-resistant? The short answer to …

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Inside the cell, the RNA genome of the virus is released into the cytoplasm, or fluid-filled main compartment, of the cell. There, the RNA molecule is “read” (translated) by enzymes in the cell …