Adrian Clint M.

Gaa

CE – 1314

ACTIVITY 1

1. Cite 2 –harmful 2- helpful another example of each:

a. Monera
- Helpful:
 They enrich the soil and serve as an important part of the nitrogen cycle
 They are also helpful in the production of some food items and
antibiotics.
- Harmful
 Some archaebacteria, called methanogens, produce methane, a potent,
environmentally harmful greenhouse gas associated with global
warming. The intestines of ruminants, such as cows and sheep, contain
methanogens.

b. Protista
- Helpful:
 Protists make up a huge part of the food chain and supply much of the
oxygen we breathe.
 Saprobic protists have the essential function of returning inorganic
nutrients to the soil and water. This process allows for new plant growth,
which in turn generates sustenance for other organisms along the food
chain.
- Harmful
 Some severe diseases of humans are caused by protists, primarily blood
parasites. Malaria, trypanosomiasis (e.g., African sleeping sickness),
leishmaniasis, toxoplasmosis, and amoebic dysentery are debilitating or
fatal afflictions.
 A small number of protists are serious pathogenic parasites that must
infect other organisms to survive and propagate. For example, protist
parasites include the causative agents of malaria, African sleeping
sickness, amoebic encephalitis, and waterborne gastroenteritis in
humans.
c. Virus
- Helpful
 They can be harnessed to treat illness, deliver vaccines, and diagnose
infections. They're wielded as research tools to illuminate biology and
disease and develop new drugs.
 Some mammalian viruses can protect their hosts from infection by
related viruses or from disease caused by completely unrelated
pathogens, such as bubonic plague.

- Harmful
  Marburg Virus - Marburg virus symptoms are similar to Ebola in that
both viruses can cause hemorrhagic fever, meaning that infected people
develop high fevers, and bleeding throughout the body that can lead to
shock, organ failure and death,
d. Fungi
- Helpful
 Fungi are essential to many food and industrial processes, fungi are used
in the production of enzymes, organic acids, vitamins, and antibiotics.
 Fungi can also destroy crops, cause diseases in humans (e.g., candidiasis
and ringworm), and ruin clothing and food with mildew and rot.
- Harmful
 Fungi constitute the largest number of plant pathogens and are
responsible for a range of serious plant diseases. Most vegetable diseases
are caused by fungi. They damage plants by killing cells and/or causing
plant stress. Sources of fungal infections are infected seed, soil, crop
debris, nearby crops and weeds.
 Fungi cause three different types of human illness: poisonings, parasitic
infections, and allergies. Many poisonous mushrooms are eaten by
mistake because they look like edible mushrooms.

2. Determine the source or place they are usually found.

a. Monera
- They are single-celled creatures that are typically found in damp environments.
They can be discovered as parasites in other creatures, hot springs, deep seas,
and snow. Organelles that are bound to membranes are absent in monerans.
b. Protista
- Protists are often watery creatures. To live, they require a wet atmosphere.
Their natural habitats include wet areas like marshes, puddles, lakes, and the
ocean. Protists can exist independently.
c. Virus
- They can occasionally cause illnesses and are found in plants, animals, and
other living things. A living entity such as a human, an animal, or a plant
serves as the sole place for viruses to live and reproduce.
d. Fungi
- Fungi can be incredibly sophisticated multicellular creatures or single-celled
critters. They may be found in almost any location, although the majority of
them prefer to dwell on land, mostly in soil or on plant matter, as opposed to
the sea or fresh water.

3. if Harmful – Disease cause, symptoms (of each example)

a. Monera
- Tuberculosis (TB) is a disease caused by germs that are spread from person to
person through the air. The symptoms of tuberculosis are as follows:
 a persistent cough that lasts more than 3 weeks and usually brings up
phlegm, which may be bloody.
 weight loss.
 night sweats.
  high temperature.
 tiredness and fatigue.
 loss of appetite.
 swellings in the neck.
b. Protista
- Malaria is a serious and sometimes fatal disease caused by a parasite that
commonly infects a certain type of mosquito which feeds on humans. The
symptoms of malaria are as follows:
 fever and flu-like illness,
 including shaking chills,
 headache, muscle aches, and tiredness,
 nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea may also occur.
c. Virus
- Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) is a chronic, potentially life-
threatening condition caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). By
damaging your immune system, HIV interferes with your body's ability to fight
infection and disease.
 Fever.
 Headache.
 Muscle aches and joint pain.
 Rash.
 Sore throat and painful mouth sores.
 Swollen lymph glands, mainly on the neck.
 Diarrhea.
 Weight loss.
d. Fungi
- Aspergillosis is an infection caused by a type of mold (fungus). The illnesses
resulting from aspergillosis infection usually affect the respiratory system, but
their signs and severity vary greatly. The mold that triggers the illnesses,
aspergillus, is everywhere — indoors and outdoors.
 Fever.
 Chest pain.
 Cough.
 Coughing up blood.
 Shortness of breath.
 Other symptoms can develop if the infection spreads from the lungs to
other parts of the body.

4. if Helpful – Uses (of each example)

a. Monera
- Food processing
 Sourdough bread is made to rise by fermentation, with a leaven that
consists of bacteria, often combined with wild yeast enzymes. The milk-
souring bacterial genus Lactobacillus is used to make yogurt and cheese.
Bacteria are also used to form organic acids in pickles and vinegar.
- Biotechnology
  Biotechnology involves the use of microorganisms including bacteria in
the manufacturing and services industries. These include chemical
manufacturing such as ethanol, acetone, organic acid, enzymes, and
perfumes. Bacteria are important in the production of many dietary
supplements and pharmaceuticals. For example, Escherichia coli is used
for commercial preparation of riboflavin and vitamin K. E. coli is also
used to produce D-amino acids such as D-p-hydroxy phenylglycine, an
important intermediate for synthesis of the antibiotic amoxicillin.
b. Protista
- Medicine
 Many protists are also commonly used in medical research. For example,
medicines made from protists are used in treatment of high blood
pressure, digestion problems, ulcers, and arthritis.
- Products
 Protists are also valuable in industry. Look on the back of a milk carton.
You will most likely see carrageenan, which is extracted from red algae.
This is used to make puddings and ice cream solid (Figure below).
Chemicals from other kinds of algae are used to produce many kinds of
plastics.
c. Virus
- Diabetes
 The hepatitis A virus can protect against hepatitis C, and researchers
have used lymphoma-associated viruses to cure type 1 diabetes in mice.
Proponents lament that human viruses remain underexplored as infection
fighters.
- Identifying Cancer Cells
 Latent (non-symptomatic) herpes viruses can help human natural
killer cells (a specific type of white blood cell) identify cancer cells and
cells infected by other pathogenic viruses. They arm the natural killer
cells with antigens (a foreign substance that can cause an immune
response in the body) that will enable them to identify tumour cells.
d. Fungi
- Nutrient Cycling
 Fungi have the ability to transform nutrients in a way that makes them
available for plants. Some fungi are decomposers which mean that they
break down plant and animal debris, thus cycling nutrient and increasing
their availability in the soil. They can also propel nitrogen fixation and
phosphorus mobilization, two of the main nutrients required for plant
development and productivity.
- Carbon Cycling and Climate regulation
 Fungi are important contributors to the soil carbon stock. They play a
major part in the carbon cycle through the soil food web. Decomposers
cycle carbon from litter and dead plant material, while other species
living in mutual symbiotic association with plant roots (i.e., mycorrhizal
fungi), provide more stable stocks of carbon.
- Nutrition and food security
 Some mushrooms are commonly found in the diets of many people
around the world. These edible mushrooms are rich in nutrients such as
vitamin B, C and D, fiber, minerals including potassium, phosphorus,
calcium and they are also a good source of protein. In fact, many
mushrooms rank above vegetables, and it comes to their protein content.
For that reason, edible mushrooms are considered a good substitute for
meat in vegetarian/vegan diets and in diets of people who don’t have
access to meat.