The exact origins of viruses are still a mystery. Scientists theorize that viruses may have evolved from mobile genetic elements, which are pieces of DNA or RNA that can move around within a genome. These elements gained the ability to move between cells, potentially giving rise to the first viruses. Another theory suggests viruses may be descendants of previously free-living organisms that adapted a parasitic replication strategy.
In simpler terms, viruses may have started as small pieces of genetic material that learned to move between cells and eventually evolved to depend on those cells for survival and reproduction.
