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May 10, 2022

Differences between mould, bacteria, and viruses you need to know about

Cutout paper composition of question sign with bacteria and viruses

The key differences you need to know about mould, bacteria and viruses and what it means for you.

What Are Microbes?

Microbes refer to a class of “micro-scale” organisms. This refers to single bodies that are too small for us see with the naked eye.

By the same token, we have microbiology, the study of microbes. Examples of microbes include bacteria, fungi, algae, and protozoa.

Unlike living organisms, viruses don’t have many of the same features of living cells. They also replicate in a unique way, which is to infect other living cells, and use the contents and features of the host cell. This makes viruses difficult to classify as microbes. But to keep things simple, the definition of microbes can be broadened to include viruses.

How Do Viruses Differ from Other Microbes?

Microbes include bacteria, fungi, and viruses. Bacterial and fungal cells differ from viruses primarily in terms of their size and how they multiply.

Bacteria and fungi can multiply on inanimate surfaces, such as polymers, coatings, and textiles. When bacteria and fungi cause infections, the illness is usually restricted to a local infection that affects a specific part of the human body.

Viruses are 10-100 times smaller than bacteria and fungi. Viruses reproduce by infecting a living host cell and then multiplying in great numbers. Because of how quickly they multiply and spread, they can cause serious illness.

Table of differences

CharacteristicBacteriaFungiViruses
Size0.15-2.0μm Moulds: 10-40μm
Yeasts: 5-8μm
0.15-2.0μm
StructureMade of living cellsMade of living cellsMade of noncellular particles
Nucleic AcidBoth DNA and RNABoth DNA and RNAEither DNA and RNA
ProteinPresentPresentPresent
MembranesPresentPresentNon-enveloped: Absent
Enveloped: Present
Growth (increase in size)PresentPresentAbsent
Self-Multiplication (increase in number)YesYesNo, needs to be inside a host cell (ex. animal cells) to use resources for multiplication
MetabolismYesYesNo
BeneficialYes: environmental nutrient cycling, food productionYes: environmental nutrient cycling, food productionNo: viruses can infect humans, animals, plants, fungi, algae, protozoa, and bacterial cells
Used in research
Disease TreatmentAntibioticsAntibioticsAntiviral and symptom management
Characteristic differences between bacteria, fungi and viruses

What do these differences mean for you?

These differences can mean that you may require different types of cleaning products based on what you are trying to kill.

For instance, there are products that target mould and bacteria, such as Kemsol Super Blue. Meanwhile, viruses can be dealt with using specialised disinfectants such as Viruclear, or Viruclear Plus.

Any questions? Feel free to talk to us about anything you’ve read here.

Filed Under: News

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