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BIOLOGICAL AGENTS
R. Fuster - I.E.S. Isidor Macabich
• Biological agents are microorganisms that cause
diseases. They are also called pathogens.
• Microorganisms means that we can’t see them with the
naked eye. We need a microscope.
BIOLOGICAL AGENTS ARE:
BACTERIA
VIRUS
FUNGI
PROTOZOA
VIRUS (sing) / VIRUSES (pl.)
• A virus (from the latin
meaning toxin or poison),
is a microscopic
infectious agent that is
unable to grow or
reproduce outside a host
cell.
• Viruses infect all cellular
life forms and are
grouped into animal, plant
and bacterial types,
according to the type of
host infected.
TYPES OF VIRUS
WHAT IS A VIRUS LIKE?
• Each viral particle, or virion,
consists of genetic material,
DNA or RNA, within a
protective protein coat called
a capsid.
•
The capsid shape varies
from simple helical and
icosahedral (polyhedral or
near-spherical) forms, to
more complex structures
with tails or an envelope.
Diseases caused by viruses include:
• influenza (flu)
• Rubella
• Colds
• chicken pox
• Measles
• AIDS
• Mumps
BACTERIUM (sing.)/ BACTERIA (pl.)
• Bacteria are a group of
unicellular
microorganisms
• They are prokaryotic
cells included in the
Kingdom Monera
TYPES OF BACTERIA
They come in many
shapes and sizes, but
even the largest are only
10 micrometres long (10
millionths of a metre).
Bacteria have a wide
range of shapes, ranging
from spheres to rods and
spirals.
WHAT IS A BACTERIUM LIKE?
Bacteria are living cells and, in good conditions, can multiply rapidly.
Once inside the body, they release poisons or toxins that make us feel ill.
• Diseases caused by bacteria include:
•
food poisoning
•
Cholera
•
Typhoid
•
whooping cough
•
gonorrhoea (a Sexually Transmitted Disease)
A white blood cell ingesting disease-causing bacteria
PROTOZOAN(sing) / PROTOZOA(pl.)
• The name 'protozoa'
is used for single
celled organisms like
amoebas and ciliates.
• They are unicellular
eukaryotes included
in the kingdom
Protoctists
TYPES OF PROTOZOA
MALARIA
FUNGUS (sing.) / FUNGI (pl.)
• A fungus is a eukaryotic
organism that is a member of
the kingdom Fungi.
•
The fungi are heterotrophic
organisms
• The kingdom Fungi includes
mushrooms
, mould
and yeast
.
Athlete's foot, also called Tinea Pedis, is a parasitic fungal infection of the
epidermis of the human foot.
The term "athlete's foot" refers to the disease and not the organism (fungus)
Trichophyton
…And if you want to know more…
www.sdnhm.org/.../teachers/background.html
Or play a game...”Bacteria in cafeteria”
http://www.amnh.org/nationalcenter/infection/02_bac/02_bac.html