Viruses can only be grown in the laboratory in

  • A. sterile nutrient agar plates
  • B. living cells, such as chick embryos or cell cultures
  • C. rich broth shaken with oxygen
  • D. extracts of sterile soil

Explanation

Because viruses have no metabolism of their own, they multiply only inside living host cells, so laboratories use cell cultures, chick embryos or live animals. This obligate dependence on cells is exactly why artificial media fail.

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