Biological Classification

Biology · Class 11

Simulation · Biology · Class 11

Build an infectious agent

"Build an infectious agent" is a free, interactive Class 11 Biology simulation for NEET, built on the NCERT section "Viroids, prions and lichens" in Biological Classification. Assemble an infectious agent from parts (protein coat, RNA, DNA, folded protein) and see it named virus, viroid or prion; RNA+DNA together is refused. NEET has asked about this idea 3 times in 10 years of papers.

From the lesson Viroids, prions and lichens in Biological Classification. Change the values and watch what happens.

Build an infectious agentBiology · Class 11

What it shows

NCERT §2.6

Assemble an infectious agent from parts (protein coat, RNA, DNA, folded protein) and see it named virus, viroid or prion; RNA+DNA together is refused.

Controls

3 to try

  • Toggleprotein capsid
  • Segmentednucleic acid none / RNA / DNA / both
  • Togglemisfolded protein only

Try this

Build the agent of potato spindle tuber disease and the agent of mad cow disease.

Common mistake

A viroid is a small virus with a coat; a virus can carry DNA and RNA.

In NEET

10 years of papers

Asked 3 times in 10 years of NEET.

See the past questions: Biological Classification (chapter)

The idea behind it

NCERT §2.6

  • T.O. Diener (1971) discovered the viroid, an infectious agent smaller than a virus that causes potato spindle tuber disease.
  • A viroid is free RNA with no protein coat, which is what separates it from a virus; its RNA is of low molecular weight.
  • Prions are infectious agents made of abnormally folded protein, about the size of viruses, that transmit certain neurological diseases.
  • Prion diseases include bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE, mad cow disease) in cattle and its human counterpart, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD).
  • Lichens are symbiotic, mutually useful associations between algae and fungi. The algal partner is the phycobiont (autotrophic) and the fungal partner is the mycobiont (heterotrophic).
  • In a lichen the alga makes food for the fungus, while the fungus gives shelter and absorbs water and mineral nutrients for the alga. The two are so closely joined that a lichen looks like a single organism.
  • Lichens are very good indicators of pollution because they do not grow in polluted areas.

Questions

4 answers

What does the "Build an infectious agent" simulation show?
Assemble an infectious agent from parts (protein coat, RNA, DNA, folded protein) and see it named virus, viroid or prion; RNA+DNA together is refused.
What mistake does the "Build an infectious agent" simulation fix?
A common mistake it clears up: A viroid is a small virus with a coat; a virus can carry DNA and RNA.
Has NEET asked about this idea?
Yes. NEET has asked about this idea 3 times in 10 years of papers.
Is this simulation free?
Yes. It is free and runs in the browser on a phone or a laptop. It belongs to the lesson "Viroids, prions and lichens" in Biological Classification (Class 11 Biology).

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