Largest virus discovered in ocean water off Chile – visible under light microscope
See on Scoop.it – Virology and Bioinformatics from Virology.ca
The largest virus yet discovered – bigger than some bacteria – is isolated from sea water pulled up off the coast of Chile. Called Megavirus chilensis, it is 10 to 20 times wider than the average virus. It just beats the previous record holder, Mimivirus, which was found in a water cooling tower in the UK in 1992. The particle measures about 0.7 micrometres (thousandths of a millimetre) in diameter and you don’t need an electron microscope to see it; you can see it with an ordinary light microscope.
See on www.bbc.co.uk
