Infectious Diseases
Standards
8.L.1.1 Summarize the basic characteristics of viruses, bacteria, fungi, and parasites relating to the spread, treatment and prevention of disease.
8.L.1.2 Explain the difference between epidemic and pandemic as it relates to the spread, treatment and prevention of disease.
What is microbiology?
Microbiology is a branch of science that deals with microorganisms
Virus
A virus is considered to be non-living but it dose affect living things. It needs a host cell to reproduce. When the virus reproduce it goes and it evades and kills other healthy cells. A virus can be transmitted by human contact, water, Insects, and many other ways. To prevent the spread of an virus it is good to get a vaccine. Some examples of viruses include HIV/AIDS, yellow fever, chicken pox, polio, etc.
Bacteria
Bacteria cells are prokaryotic, also they are unicellular meaning they are made up of a single cell. To reproduce they use something called binary fussion. This mean that one cell grows and makes copies of its DNA or BNA and splits in two. To transmit bacteria it can be by direct or indirect contact. Such as sneezing, coughing, and surfaces. To treat diseases caused by bacteria you use antibiotics. Some of these diseases would be rabies, leprost, lyme disease, and bacterial men. The three different way to classify bacteria is spherical, rod like, and spiral.
Fungi
Fungi is living and can be transmitted by soil, trees, and on your skin. To treat fungi you use antibiotics and to prevent it it's good to wash your hands, don't share shoes and to always wear clean socks. Some examples of diseases caused by fungi are athlete's foot, ringworm, and thrush foot.
Parasite
Parasites are living and they move on there own from one thing to the next. To treat parasites you use medicines and you remove them from the host. To prevent parasites you avoid direct contact with infected person and don't drink water from lakes, ponds,and rivers. Examples of diseases caused by parasites would be malaria and amebic dysentery.
What is outbreak, epidemic, and pandemic?
Outbreak: Occurrence of a disease greater than would otherwise be expected at a particular time and place
Epidemic: An outbreak of a disease that affects many people in an area of a specific country or region
Pandemic: An epidemic that spreads over a very large area or throughout the entire world
The difference between an epidemic and a pandemic would be that an epidemic only happens in a specific county or region and a pandemic happens in very large areas and could happen throughout the world. The things that are the same would be it spreads to a lot of people.
Vocabulary Words
- Outbreak: Occurrence of a disease greater than would otherwise be expected at a particular time and place
- Epidemic: An outbreak of a disease that affects many people in an a specific country or region
- Pandemic: An epidemic that spreads over a very large area or throughout the entire world
- Vector: An organism typically an insect, that transmits disease.
- Pathogen: A virus, bacteria, parasite, or protozoa that can cause illness and infection
- Protozoa: Diverse organisms that cannot be classified as animals, plants, or fungi, EX; amoebas and algae
- Virus: A non-living pathogen that can change mutate. It infects a host cell and replicates to cause illness and disease.
- Bacteria: Single-celled prokaryotes that can cause disease. Multiply rapidly and can form colonies