There are about 10 billion tons of bacteria floating around in the ocean. That's about 10³⁰ bacteria — a nonillion. They're called 'bacterioplankton'. But about 40% of these bacteria are infected by viruses!
Viruses are an enormous source of new genetic information. In the old days, many molecular biologists thought that viral genes come ultimately from genes in cells. But this is not supported by the data. Most genes in viruses can't be traced to cellular ancestors! It seems that the transfer of virus genes to cells is more common than the reverse process.
Thus, ecologists are becoming ever more convinced of the importance of viruses. Some are pushing to call a virus-infected cell a 'virocell'. They argue this is the living form of the virus, while virus particles outside of cells are the equivalent of seeds or spores. Viral infection transform an ordinary cell into a virocell, whose function is no longer to produce cells but to produce more viruses.
