A pathogen is a microorganism that causes disease.
2. Types of pathogens a/Bacteria - Characteristics of bacteria: - Single-celled organism without a nucleus (neither plants nor animals)
- Reproduce by splitting in two new identical cells.
- Found in diverse environments (in soil, air, water, inside
living organisms)
- Diseases associated with bacteria:
• Cholera • Syphilis • Tuberculosis • Tetanus • Pneumonia • Salmonella Types of pathogens b/ Viruses - Characteristics of viruses: • Viruses are not plants, animals or prokaryotes like bacteria. • Viruses are even not organisms because they are not free-living (they cannot reproduce and carry on metabolic processes without a host cell.
- Diseases associated with viruses:
• Influenza • Measles • Rubella • Chickenpox • Herpes • Hepatitis • COVID-19 Types of pathogens c/Fungi - Characteristics of fungi: • a group of living organisms which are classified in their own kingdom. They are not animals, plants, or bacteria. • have complex eukaryotic cells like animals and plants. • found everywhere: on land, in the water, in the air, and even in plants and animals. • absorb food from organic matter
- Diseases associated with fungi:
- Asthma or allergies. - Skin and nails diseases - Lung infections (pneumonia) - Mouth and throat infections Types of pathogens d/Protozoa - Characteristics of protozoa: • single-celled organisms
• most are parasites, which means
they live on and feed off of plants and animals (including humans) to survive.
- Diseases associated with protozoa:
- Malaria - Toxoplasmosis - Amoebic dysentery 3. Important terms The passing of a pathogen to an uninfected person is called transmission.
The entry of the pathogen into the body is known as infection.
A person infected by a pathogen is said to be a host for that pathogen.
Diseases caused by pathogens and passing from a person to a person are
called transmissible diseases (sometimes known as contagious diseases) 4.Transmission of pathogens Pathogens can be transmitted directly or indirectly.
Direct transmission – pathogens are passed from one person to another
in direct contact (without an intermediary). - By blood (AIDS) - By sharing personal accessories (skin infections)
Indirect transmission - Through the respiratory passages by sneezing or coughing (flu)
- By food or water (salmonella, cholera)
- By vectors ( dogs and foxes for rabies, mosquitoes for malaria)