According to the CDC, “the best way to prevent illness is to avoid being exposed to this virus.” Some steps you can take to limit your exposure to the virus:

• Regularly wash your hands for 20 seconds or use a hand sanitizer with at least 60 percent alcohol. Pay attention to hand hygiene, especially when you’ve been in a public place and after coughing, sneezing, or blowing your nose.
• Practice social distancing by increasing the space between you and other people. That means staying home as much as you can, especially if you feel sick.
• Disinfect frequently touched surfaces (like keyboards, doorknobs, and light switches) every day.
• Cover coughs and sneezes with the inside of your elbow or a tissue. Throw the tissue away immediately and wash your hands.
• Wear a facemask only if you are sick or are caring for someone who’s sick and can’t wear a facemask.

For more information on this ever-developing COVID-19 pandemic, consult the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s page dedicated to the virus, found here.

They are caused by different viruses and have slightly different symptoms.

See related question below for the symptoms of the A-H1N1/09 "Swine Flu".

The symptoms of the cold and flu can be hard to differentiate, sometimes not even possible without a specific laboratory test to determine which virus is causing your symptoms. See the related link below for more information on this from US Flu website, Flu.gov.

The primary differences are:

• The flu usually causes a high fever and a cold doesn't cause a fever except in rare circumstance.
• General aches and pains with the flu are usually present and can be severe, with a cold they are mild.
• You may feel very fatigued from the flu and this is unusual with a cold.
• Headaches are much more common with the flu.
• The usual cold symptoms of stuffy or runny nose, sneezing, and sore throat are only sometimes seen with the flu.
• A severe cough comes with the flu but is not as severe with a cold.

Colds typically begin with a sore throat. Sometimes a mild fever, cough, and/or a stuffy nose are present. It is important to note the difference between a cold and an allergy because of the different treatments associated with each. Cold symptoms can usually be controlled through the use of a decongestant and anti-inflammatory medicine (e.g. Ibuprofen). Fever is not as common in colds as in the flu. Those with colds almost always have fevers under 101 degrees Fahrenheit.

There are a few basic kinds of flu viruses but hundreds of cold viruses. Colds are usually milder than the flu. People with colds are more likely to have a runny or stuffy nose. Colds generally do not result in serious health problems, such as pneumonia, bacterial infections, or hospitalizations, whereas this is possible with an infection with a flu virus.

FLU

LIKELY (>50% chance of these symptoms)

• fever 102 deg. F (39 deg. C) or higher (can reach up to 107 deg. F (42 deg. C) in extreme cases)
• dry hacking cough
• severe runny nose
• stuffiness
• chills (happen during fevers when body adjusts thermostat to raise it's set point)
• headache

POSSIBLE (30-50% chance)

• sore throat

RARE (< 30% chance)

• diarrhea
• vomiting

COLD

LIKELY (>50% chance)

• runny nose
• stuffiness
• coughing frequently

POSSIBLE (30-50% chance)

• fever 99 deg. F to 101 deg. F (37.2 deg C to 38.3 deg C.)
• chills
• sore throat

RARE (<30% chance)

• gastrointestinal symptoms like diarrhea and vomiting

A cold, on the other hand, a common viral infection in which the mucous membrane of the nose and throat becomes inflamed.
Influenza (the flu) is usually a more severe illness than the common cold, which is caused by other respiratory viruses. The 'flu typically showcases symptoms including headaches, chills and cough followed rapidly by a fever, appetite loss, muscle aches and tiredness. Cold symptoms are limited to the upper respiratory tract with runny nose, sneezing, watery eyes, and throat irritation.

The coronaviruses are a family of viruses whose symptoms can range from the common cold to something more serious and potentially lethal. A novel coronavirus is currently spreading across the planet, affecting the daily lives of many.

In January 2020, an outbreak of a new coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) occurred in Wuhan, China. It causes a disease called COVID-19, whose symptoms include fever, cough, and shortness of breath. It can lead to death, particularly for the elderly and people with serious chronic medical conditions. There are currently no vaccines or antiviral treatments available.

More than 150 countries and territories, including the United States, have confirmed cases of the infection since the initial outbreak, and on March 11, the World Health Organization declared it a pandemic.

For more information on this ever-developing situation, consult the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s page dedicated to COVID-19, found here.

Even after receiving the flu vaccine you can get the flu if you are exposed to a different type of flu virus than was in the vaccine, if your immune system is not functioning properly, or if you are exposed before the vaccine was able to create the proper antibodies from the vaccination (usually 2 weeks after the vaccination in most adults and longer in children - up to a month) . The flu vaccine is made with the viral particles of the top 3 flu virus strains that are expected to be circulating in that upcoming season for which the vaccine was developed. US CDC scientists determine each year what viruses should be in the following year's vaccine based on what viruses are circulating in Asia, since these will be moving west toward the US during the flu season. There are many strains, if the scientists do not predict the correct ones, you may still become ill despite a vaccination.

You CANNOT get the flu from the flu vaccines. The viruses in the vaccines are killed (inactivated) or weakened, so you cannot get the flu from a flu vaccination. You can check out the NIH's website for more info.

The lytic cycle is one of the two cycles of viral reproduction, the other being the lysogenic cycle. These cycles should not, however, be seen as separate, but rather as somewhat interchangeable. The lytic cycle is typically considered the main method of viral replication, and it results in the immediate destruction of the infected cell.

A generalized scheme is presented here. There are variations in the process depending on the type of virus (its genome) and the type of host (bacteria or plant cells or animal cells).

The six steps of the lytic cycle operative in viral pathogenesis can be summarized as follows:

1. The virus finds a host cell/ Contact (or initial infection):

   Viruses require a host to replicate. To infect a cell, the virion links on to a specific region (like a receptor or a glycoprotein) on the surface of the host cell. Viruses do so by either attaching to a receptor on the cell's surface or by simple mechanical force.

2. The virus enters the cell/ Injection (or in some cases the virus' genes are injected into the cell while the virion remains outside the cell): Once a virus attaches, it enters the cell through the plasma membrane and (if present) the cell wall. The virus then releases its genetic material (either single- or double-stranded DNA or RNA) into the cell. In doing this, the cell is infected and can also be targeted by the immune system.

3. The virus takes over the host cell/Integration: The viral genetic material integrates with the host genetic material and uses it to express viral genes instead of the usual cell function. In other words, the virus hijacks the gene expression machinery of the host. Technically, the virus' nucleic acid uses the host cell's machinery to make large amounts of viral components. In the case of DNA viruses, the DNA transcribes itself into messenger RNA (mRNA) molecules that are then used to direct the cell's ribosomes. One of the first polypeptides to be translated is one that destroys the host cell's DNA. In retroviruses (which inject an RNA strand), a unique enzyme called reverse transcriptase transcribes the viral RNA into DNA, which is then transcribed again into mRNA.

4. Biosynthesis/ Viral gene expression: Viral genes are expressed and parts (building blocks) of new virions are formed. After many copies of viral components are made, they are ready to be assembled into complete virus particles.

5. The genes from the virus turn the cell into a virus factory/ Packaging and maturation: Copies of the viral genetic material are packaged into the newly formed virions and the parts are assembled to form many new complete virus particles.

6. The new viruses break out and find a new host to repeat the process/

   Lysis and infection: Once new complete virions are fully formed, the production of an enzyme that breaks down the cell wall and allows fluid to enter is begun. The cell eventually becomes filled with typically 100-200 virions and liquid. It then bursts open, which is called host cell lysis. This is how the lytic cycle got its name. Once the host cell is lysed, a huge number of new viruses are released into the inter cellular spaces of the host. The new viruses are then free to attach to and infect other cells in the same host, or to shed from the first host and infect others. This process repeats cell by cell and host by host.

Note about a "Lytic" cycle without lysis: Some viruses escape the host cell without bursting the cell membrane. Instead, they bud off from it by taking a portion of the membrane with them to package the new virion. Eventually the host cell's membrane can be totally used up in the budding process, so it is ultimately destroyed by this other mechanism, just as host cells that are destroyed by lysis. Hepatitis C viruses presumably use this method.

The CDC and researchers worldwide still have a lot to learn about COVID-19 and how it spreads. According to current knowledge, though, the coronavirus that causes COVID-19 is mainly spread from person to person through respiratory droplets. That means droplets from an infected person’s coughs and sneezes land on other people’s noses or mouths, or they breathe them in, and that infects them, too. It’s also possible that the virus can spread through people touching contaminated objects and then touching their mouth, nose, or eyes.

For more information on this ever-developing situation, consult the CDC’s page dedicated to COVID-19, found here.

Colds are spread when germs enter the body through a moist body surface, typically the eyes, nose, and mouth. Some transfer of fluid between an infected person and a healthy person (e.g. a sneeze, a kiss, a shared beverage) can spread a cold. Also, a person with a cold can contaminate a surface such as a doorknob with his hands. If a healthy person touches that contaminated doorknob and then rubs his eyes or nose or eats with his hands, he can get the cold. For this reason, regular and thorough hand washing is recommended especially during cold and flu seasons.
Colds can be spread by one that is sick breathing on another who is not sick. If the other person breathes in the sickness there is a chance that the healthy person will get sick.
Sneezing, coughing, touching your face and mouth and then shaking hands with people.

poor hygiene and spread of infection between humans
Sneezing
colds can spread by when u touch or eat something and someone else comes and touch or eat it tyhen that person has the cold in about a week or less
sneezing, touching or using the same silverware.
they're airborne and also can be caught by touching a foreign object with the germ then touching your face.
You can spread the flu by coming to school sick, if you do not wash your hand after using the toilet you have spread over 2,000 germs on your hands. always wash your hands before you eat. Wash your hands after touching money. If you follow these steps you should stay healthy!

ALWAYS GET YOUR FLU SHOT!
Nasal secretions containing cold viruses contaminate the hands of people with colds as a result of nose blowing, covering sneezes, and touching the nose. Also, cold viruses may contaminate objects and surfaces in the environment of a cold sufferer.
people not washing their hands, not catching their snot in their hands when they sneeze.

other people touch things that people with colds have touched so that is how they spread.
You contract the cold by getting the virus inside your body, simple as that. Mouth, ears, nose, eyes, and cuts are the way that colds are usually contracted. Colds can also be contracted through sexual organs.

The reason getting the cold on your hands is bad is because touching any of those vulnerable entrances will spread the virus there immediately.

Once a person is infection, the virus likes to wait in their throat in and nasal passages when it comes to spreading. While in their throat, the cold will be spread whenever they cough or exhale. While in their nose, it irritates the walls of the nose and cause more mucus to be produced, giving it a nice little environment to live in and exit the body.