No, viruses do not grow by mitosis.
Why Viruses Don't Use Mitosis
Viruses are acellular, meaning they are not composed of cells. Mitosis is a form of cell division used by eukaryotic cells (cells with a nucleus) for growth and repair. Because viruses are not cells, they lack the cellular machinery necessary to perform mitosis.
How Viruses Replicate Instead
Instead of mitosis, viruses replicate using a different process:
- Attachment: A virus attaches to a host cell.
- Entry: The virus enters the host cell.
- Replication: The virus uses the host cell's machinery (ribosomes, enzymes, etc.) to replicate its own genetic material (DNA or RNA) and produce viral proteins.
- Assembly: The newly synthesized viral components are assembled into new virus particles.
- Release: The new virus particles are released from the host cell, often killing the host cell in the process, and can then infect other cells.
In essence, viruses hijack the host cell's resources to create copies of themselves. This replication process is fundamentally different from mitosis, which involves the division of a cell into two identical daughter cells.
| Feature | Mitosis | Viral Replication |
|---|---|---|
| Organism | Eukaryotic cells | Viruses |
| Cellularity | Cellular | Acellular |
| Mechanism | Cell division | Host cell hijacking |
| Outcome | Two identical daughter cells | Production of multiple new viruses |
| Independence | Independent of other cells | Dependent on host cell |
Therefore, because viruses are not cells and lack the necessary cellular machinery, they do not grow by mitosis. They replicate by using the host cell's machinery to create multiple copies of themselves.
