A virus mutates, and therefore it has which of the following traits of living things?
It uses energy
It evolves
It is made of cells
It grows and develops
A virus mutates and therefore it has the trait of evolution.
The trait of living things that a virus possesses is that it evolves.
Out of the given options, a virus exhibits the trait of evolving. This is because viruses can undergo genetic changes and mutations over time, which allows them to adapt to new environments and resist treatments or immune responses.
To determine this, we can understand the characteristics of living things and analyze whether a virus meets those criteria:
1. Uses energy: Viruses are not able to harness energy by themselves. They lack the required cellular machinery for metabolism and thus rely on host cells to replicate and produce energy.
2. Made of cells: Viruses are acellular, meaning they do not have cells. They consist of a protein coat, called a capsid, which encapsulates genetic material (either DNA or RNA).
3. Grows and develops: Viruses cannot grow or develop on their own. They lack the cellular processes necessary for growth and differentiation.
4. Evolves: This is the correct characteristic. Viruses can undergo mutation and evolution. Their genetic material can change through errors during replication, recombination, or reassortment, leading to the emergence of new viral strains or variants.
Therefore, the trait of evolving is the one that a virus exhibits from the provided list.