Which type of culture system is used to grow viruses?

• A. Cell culture
• B. Bacterial culture
• C. Yeast culture
• D. Plant tissue culture

Answer: (A)

Viruses can only multiply inside living cells; they’re obligate intracellular parasites and lack the full set of cellular machinery needed to replicate on their own. A cell culture provides a controlled supply of living host cells, along with the nutrients and environment those cells need, so the virus can infect, hijack the host’s machinery, and produce more viral particles.

Bacterial culture grows bacteria, not viruses. Yeast culture grows yeast cells, and plant tissue culture grows plant cells—none of these provide the specific host-cell environment most viruses require. That’s why cell culture is used to grow viruses.