The right answer is: An organism's characteristics are determined by their genome which is inherited from one generation to the next.
We can give some characteristics of a living organism:
* The ability to stay alive by drawing energy and necessary components into the environment. This ability is based on the metabolism that includes various functions, such as nutrition, respiration, photosynthesis ...;
* The ability to develop according to a certain organization (growth, morphology, cell division, development);
* The ability to reproduce and give birth to other living organisms (vegetative or sexual reproduction);
* The need for a favorable environment to survive (temperature, pressure, oxygen, water ...).
Living matter is based on organic chemistry based on carbon.
