noun
- the infectious form of a virus as it exists outside the host cell, consisting of a nucleic acid core, a protein coat, and, in some species, an external envelope.
noun
- a virus in infective form, consisting of an RNA particle within a protein covering
n.
- A complete viral particle, consisting of RNA or DNA surrounded by a protein shell and constituting the infective form of a virus.
- A complete viral particle, consisting of RNA or DNA surrounded by a protein shell and constituting the infective form of a virus. The shell, called a capsid, protects the interior core that includes the genome and other proteins. After the virion binds to the surface of a specific host cell, its DNA or RNA is injected into the host cell and viral replication occurs with eventual spread of the infection to other host cells.