What are Vampire Viruses

About Vampire Viruses:

• They are pathogens that latch onto other viruses in order to replicate themselves.
• They emerge when a bacteriophage attaches to a soil-based virus, utilising its "life" for independent survival.
• This viral relationship between two pathogens is called a satellite and a helper. The satellite is the infectious strand that relies on the helper for support through its life cycle.
• Satellites depend on both their host organism and helper virus to complete its life cycle.
• The satellite virus depends on the helper virus to build the protective shell that covers its genetic material, called a capsid or to help it replicate its DNA.
• Most satellite viruses contain a gene that allows them to integrate into the host cell’s genetic material after they enter the cell. 
• This enables the satellite to reproduce whenever a helper enters the cell from then on.
• The host cell also copies the satellite’s DNA and its own when it divides. 

What is a Bacteriophage?

• Bacteriophages (BPs) are viruses that can infect and kill bacteria without any negative effect on human or animal cells. They are comprised of a protein capsule around an RNA or DNA genome.
• For this reason, it is supposed that they can be used, alone or in combination with antibiotics, to treat bacterial infections.