The Lytic Cycle and Lysogenic Cycle of a virus are the two ways it reproduces once it has infected a suitable host cell and taken over its control system. Although these are both ways in which a virus reproduces they have distinct differences between them.
Lytic Cycle of a Cold Sore
Step 1 consists of the cold sore virus locking its tail fibers into the host cell's receptors on the outside of the membrane, as it locks in. The tail of the virus will pierce the surface of the host cell and the viruses' DNA will then be injected into the host cell's system.
Step 2 comes into play when the viruses DNA forms a circle next to the host cell's DNA. This step us very simple but plays a huge role down the road for further infection.
Step 3 is all about the infection. During this stage the virus has now taken over the host cell's metabolism, as it is instructing the host cell to synthesize nucleic acids and proteins for the virus it is creating. New virus parts are now being created and developed faster and faster by the second.
Step 4 calls for the assembly of newly created cold sore viruses. These viruses are now fully reproduced and ready to infect more host cells.
Step 5 occurs when the host cell obtains too many cold sore viruses. The host cell's walls burst open due to the over abundance of viruses. The newly created cold sore viruses have now killed the host cell and wander through the inside of the body looking for another suitable host cell to infect.
Lysogenic Cycle of a Cold Sore
The first step of the Lysogenic Cycle and Lytic Cycle are identical. The cold sore virus locks its tail fibers into the host cell's receptors on the outside of the membrane. The tail of the virus will pierce the surface of the host cell and the viruses' DNA will then be injected into the host cell's system. Once the DNA has entered the host cell's system, the viral DNA will form a circle right beside the chromosomal DNA (host cell's DNA). Step 3 is where the Lytic and Lysogenic Cycle start to differ. Instead of taking over the host cell's metabolism and ordering the construction of viral proteins, nucleic acid and DNA; the prophage will fuse itself into the host cells DNA. From there it will wait or remain dormant and replicate for an extended period of time. This may last a couple days, a couple months or a couple generations. Eventually, something will trigger the viral DNA to take action. The viral DNA will disconnect from the host cell's DNA and will go through the Lytic Cycle.