New study reveals novel approach for combating 'resting' bacteria

Most disease-causing bacteria are known for their speed: In mere minutes, they can double their population, quickly making a person sick. But just as dangerous as this rapid growth can be a bacterium's resting state, which ...

New study paves the way for precision drugs to treat blood cancers

The Janus kinase 2 (JAK2) protein mediates signaling from several cytokine receptors in the regulation of hematopoiesis and immune responses. Somatic mutations in human JAK2 lead to constitutive activation and cytokine-independent ...

Wild desert plants face viral surprise

Just as many people battle seasonal colds and flu, native plants face their own viral threats. People have long known that plants can succumb to viruses just like humans. Now, a new study led by Michigan State University ...

Sweet success: Researchers crack sugarcane's complex genetic code

Modern hybrid sugarcane is one of the most harvested crops on the planet, used to make products including sugar, molasses, bioethanol, and bio-based materials. It also has one of the most complex genetic blueprints.

Climate change threatens resilience of Sri Lankan rainforests

Tropical ecosystems store over half of the world's above-ground carbon in their biomass, making them critically important in the global fight against climate change. As carbon dioxide levels continue to rise in the atmosphere, ...

Pathogenicity

Pathogenicity is the ability of a pathogen to produce an infectious disease in an organism.

It is often used interchangeably with the term "virulence", although virulence is used more specifically to describe the relative degree of damage done by a pathogen, or the degree of pathogenicity caused by an organism. A pathogen is either pathogenic or not, and is determined by the pathogen's ability to produce toxins, its ability to enter tissue and colonize and its ability to spread from host to host.

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