Читать книгу Astrobiology - Charles S. Cockell - Страница 131

This chapter has focused on cellular structures. Insofar as they constitute self-replicating life forms, this is justified, but there are other entities on the planet that are linked to the biosphere and which play an immensely important role in ecosystems and biological interactions. Two of them are viruses and prions, which we now explore. Quite apart from their biological importance, they challenge the neat separation of material into “life” and “non-life,” and are worth considering from this perspective. You might like to explore Chapter 2 again where viruses were discussed in the context of ideas about the definition of life.