It's rare that scientists see the good in the presence of an invasive species. But Washington University in St. Louis researchers discovered that a native mosquito in Missouri has fewer parasites when it shares its waters ...
Ecology
May 16, 2019
0
3
Malaria treatment resistance could be avoided by studying how resistance evolves during drug development, according to a new paper published in Cell Chemical Biology.
Biochemistry
May 09, 2019
0
21
A common woodland beetle that plays an important role in the decomposition of fallen trees may be getting a boost from a surprising source: parasites.
Plants & Animals
May 01, 2019
0
290
Whether human beings or animals, plants or algae: the cells of most life forms contain special structures that are responsible for energy production. Referred to as mitochondria, they normally have their own genetic material, ...
Cell & Microbiology
Apr 24, 2019
4
45
Life scientists from UCLA and the University of Bern have identified a key gene in the transmission of African sleeping sickness—a severe disease transmitted by the bite of infected tsetse flies, which are common in sub-Saharan ...
Cell & Microbiology
Apr 10, 2019
0
139
University of Adelaide researchers were inspired by everything from chocolate biscuits and Doctor Who aliens when choosing names for 10 new species of wasps.
Plants & Animals
Apr 09, 2019
0
417
For the first time scientists have found an organism that can produce chlorophyll but does not engage in photosynthesis.
Plants & Animals
Apr 03, 2019
0
3264
The unicellular parasite that causes sleeping sickness differs from other eukaryotes in the mode of regulation of an essential cellular signaling pathway. This provides a promising point of attack for drug development.
Cell & Microbiology
Apr 03, 2019
0
6
A researcher at the University of Arizona has discovered compounds derived from Photorhabdus, an insect pathogenic bacterium, that have antimicrobial and nematicidal properties that can potentially replace chemical pesticides.
Ecology
Mar 29, 2019
0
24
Striga is a parasitic plant that threatens the food supply of 300 million people in sub-Saharan Africa.Scientists have found that they can take advantage of Striga's Achilles' Heel: if it can't find a host plant, it dies.The ...
Biotechnology
Mar 28, 2019
0
8
Parasitism is a type of symbiotic relationship between two different organisms where one organism, the parasite, takes favor from the host, sometimes for a prolonged time. In general, parasites are much smaller than their hosts, show a high degree of specialization for their mode of life, and reproduce more quickly and in greater numbers than their hosts. Classic examples of parasitism include interactions between vertebrate hosts and diverse animals such as tapeworms, flukes, the Plasmodium species, and scabs. Parasitism is differentiated from parasitoidism, a relationship in which the host is always killed by the parasite such as moths, butterflies, ants, flies and others.
The harm and benefit in parasitic interactions concern the biological fitness of the organisms involved. Parasites reduce host fitness in many ways, ranging from general or specialized pathology (such as castration), impairment of secondary sex characteristics, to the modification of host behaviour. Parasites increase their fitness by exploiting hosts for food, habitat and dispersal.
Although the concept of parasitism applies unambiguously to many cases in nature, it is best considered part of a continuum of types of interactions between species, rather than an exclusive category. Particular interactions between species may satisfy some but not all parts of the definition. In many cases, it is difficult to demonstrate that the host is harmed. In others, there may be no apparent specialization on the part of the parasite, or the interaction between the organisms may be short-lived. In medicine, only eukaryotic organisms are considered parasites, with the exclusion of bacteria and viruses. Some branches of biology, however, regard members of these groups as parasitic.[citation needed]
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