remember how viruses work they are merely little bits of genetic material that hijack the host cell's mechanisms and cause the host cell to start cranking out many many new copies of the virus eventually the host cell bursts releasing all the new virions virus particles to go infect new hosts it's simply this rupturing of the host cell's membrane that kills it and it's pretty much the same story with any virus from good old cold viruses rhinoviruses to hiv apr utc