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pathogen
August 01, 2013, 04:39
Halal44pathogen
I herd on the radio about bad germs and good germs but cant find any where that tell's what the oppasite of a bad germ pathogen is like nobody ever named a good germ.
Hal
August 01, 2013, 10:57
arnieApparently
pathogen doesn't mean a "bad" germ, just a germ. According to
Wikipedia quote:
Not all pathogens are necessarily undesirable to humans.
Build a man a fire and he's warm for a day. Set a man on fire and he's warm for the rest of his life.
August 01, 2013, 20:05
Kallehquote:
A pathogen (Greek: πάθος pathos “suffering, passion” and γενής genēs “producer of”) or infectious agent (colloquially known as a germ) is a microorganism—in the widest sense, such as a virus, bacterium, prion, or fungus—that causes disease in its host.
arnie, this is from your Wikipedia site. Doesn't that infer a "bad" germ to you - since it causes a disease in the host? Many microorganisms are natural (causing no disease), but I've always thought of a pathogen as a "bad" germ, so to speak.
August 01, 2013, 22:17
arnieThis is your area, Kalleh. I suggest you take up the apparent contradiction on the Wikipedia discuss page if it worries you.
Build a man a fire and he's warm for a day. Set a man on fire and he's warm for the rest of his life.
August 02, 2013, 20:18
KallehIt doesn't worry me, arnie. To me, the Wikipedia page is in total agreement with my views. It essentially says what I said, and that is, pathogens are "bad" germs.
August 03, 2013, 07:34
Halal44OK so is there a word for a good germ? I know their are good germs in your gut so what do you call them?
August 04, 2013, 20:33
KallehGood question!
Microorganism is the general word that includes both pathogens and those non-infectious sorts of "germs." But right off the top of my head, I can't come up with a name for a non-infectious microorganism.
August 05, 2013, 01:59
arnie is defined as
quote:
One of a physiological group of globular bacteria which produces fermentations of diverse nature; --distinguished from pathogene.
I don't know if that means it's a "good germ" but that's all I can find.
Build a man a fire and he's warm for a day. Set a man on fire and he's warm for the rest of his life.
August 05, 2013, 18:58
Halal44That sound's like what wine makeing is called.
August 05, 2013, 20:54
KallehI am not a pathologist - or even close - but I am thinking no, arnie. Here is an
article , for example, about
Streptococcus faecalis var.
zymogenes, which of course is a pathogen. Interestingly, I found lots of articles on Google Scholar about this variety of
Streptococcus until about 2000, but not much since. Then there are
articles about
zymogen, which is an enzyme
precursor.August 06, 2013, 10:47
bethree5Gee I would have thought promoting fermentation a good thing
August 16, 2013, 23:49
tinmanquote:
Originally posted by arnie:
Apparently
pathogen doesn't mean a "bad" germ, just a germ. According to
Wikipedia quote:
Not all pathogens are necessarily undesirable to humans.
The following sentence explains what is meant: "In entomology, pathogens are one of the "Three P's" (predators, pathogens and parasitoids) that serve as natural or introduced biological controls to suppress arthropod pest populations."
A pathogen that causes an infectious disease in an insect pest is a "good" germ, as far as I'm concerned. One that causes a disease in me is a "bad" germ.
August 17, 2013, 00:15
tinmanquote:
Originally posted by Kalleh:
Good question! Microorganism is the general word that includes both pathogens and those non-infectious sorts of "germs." But right off the top of my head, I can't come up with a name for a non-infectious microorganism.
A non-infectious microorganism would be a harmless or beneficial microorganism.
Some plants, fungi, and animals are also
microorganisms.
Micro-animal From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
quote:
Micro-animals are animals that are microscopic and thus cannot be seen with the naked eye. Mostly these microorganisms are multicellular but none are vertebrates. Microscopic arthropods include dust mites, spider mites, and some crustaceans such as copepods and the cladocera. Another common group of microscopic animals are the rotifers, which are filter feeders that are usually found in fresh water. Some nematode species are microscopic,[1] as well as many loricifera, including the recently discovered anaerobic species, which spend their entire lives in an anoxic environment.[2][3]
Although most microscopic animals are multicellular, myxozoa, jelly fish relatives from the phylum Cnidaria, are unicellular.[4]
This site, which classifies microorganisms as "harmless, beneficial or pathogenic, which means harmful," talks about "beneficial microorganisms."
August 17, 2013, 08:58
Halal44Thank's Tinman. So microflora is the word I've been looking for?
BTW Kalleh you were right. I right clicked on Ive and it said I've. But it says microflora is wrong. Why?
August 17, 2013, 21:52
Kallehquote:
A pathogen that causes an infectious disease in an insect pest is a "good" germ, as far as I'm concerned. One that causes a disease in me is a "bad" germ.
That is a good point, Tinman. Perhaps "bad" germ is a matter of perspective.
Halal, I am not sure why it underlines
"microflora". Perhaps it's not in the Microsoft dictionary. I bet it's in Apple's.