virion
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.
Origin of virion
1Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
British Dictionary definitions for virion
/ (ˈvaɪrɪən) /
a virus in infective form, consisting of an RNA particle within a protein covering
Origin of virion
1Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for virion
[ vī′rē-ŏn′, vîr′ē- ]
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.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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