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Micro World

How small is a vaccinia virus?

A vaccinia virus is about 300 nm long.

What is measured: brick-shaped virion, length

Vaccinia Virus (300 nm) drawn to scale beside a flu virus (100 nm) and an E. coli bacterium (2 µm)
Drawn to scale, from left to right: Flu virus (100 nm), Vaccinia Virus (300 nm) and E. coli bacterium (2 µm).

Compare

How big is that, really?

  • About 6 would fit end to end along an E. coli bacterium
  • About 3× the width of a flu virus
  • About 12× the width of a ribosome

Learn

Facts about Vaccinia Virus

Vaccinia virus, used in the smallpox vaccine, is one of the largest and most complex animal viruses known.

Source: ViralZone, Vaccinia; CDC, Smallpox vaccine virology

Micro World

NameSizeCompared with Vaccinia Virus
Silica Nanoparticle100 nm0.33×
Titanium Dioxide Nanoparticle100 nm0.33×
Lassa Virus100 nm0.33×
Nuclear Pore Complex120 nm0.4×
Cowpox Virus250 nm0.83×
Collagen Fibril300 nmsame size
Vaccinia Virus300 nmthis page
Lysosome500 nm1.7×
Mimivirus750 nm2.5×
Neisseria gonorrhoeae800 nm2.7×

Test your sense of scale

Which is bigger: Vaccinia Virus or Cowpox Virus?

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