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Cool pathogens?
Started by Maschka1
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Yersinia pestis is SO 14th century. You need to pick something hip! Something cool!
There's a lot to pick from. Leishmania, brucella, bartonella, Entamoeba histolytica, Francisella tularensis, ehrlichia, cytauxzoon...
And I've always thought prions were wicked cool.
ETA: Iodamoeba butschlii?
Oh, oh! Trichomonas vaginalis! You KNOW you always wanted an excuse to talk about leukorrhea.
There's a lot to pick from. Leishmania, brucella, bartonella, Entamoeba histolytica, Francisella tularensis, ehrlichia, cytauxzoon...
And I've always thought prions were wicked cool.
ETA: Iodamoeba butschlii?
Oh, oh! Trichomonas vaginalis! You KNOW you always wanted an excuse to talk about leukorrhea.
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Some of my "favorites":
Plague (yersinia pestis)
Ebola/Marburg (US documented case in 2009)
Mad Cow
Influenza
Rabies
Plague (yersinia pestis)
Ebola/Marburg (US documented case in 2009)
Mad Cow
Influenza
Rabies
I am a fan (in a morbid sort of way) of the Rickettsiales, - including Neorickettsia risticii (Potomac Horse Fever), Borrelia burgdorferi (Lyme disease), Anaplasma phagocytophilum (granulocytic Ehrlichiosis), etc. - which tend to have complex life cycles.
If you want to talk about a little-known but emerging issue, there's Cryptococcus gattii.
Of course, these are the REALLY fun pathogens.
If you want to talk about a little-known but emerging issue, there's Cryptococcus gattii.
Of course, these are the REALLY fun pathogens.
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The heck? No Dicrocoelium dendreticum? It's got all the mind control of Toxoplasma gondii with some extra flare. It causes its host to get EATEN! I mean c'mon!
Other fun options include Echinococcus granulosas (grape-fruit sized cysts on the lungs) and that medilensis critter (Dracunculis medilensis maybe?) that pops out of your leg. Where the rod of Aesclepius came from.
Other fun options include Echinococcus granulosas (grape-fruit sized cysts on the lungs) and that medilensis critter (Dracunculis medilensis maybe?) that pops out of your leg. Where the rod of Aesclepius came from.
Well, technically, Toxoplasma does too (decreased fear of cats in rodents), but not with as much nuance.
Well, if we're going there, the species name is not capitalized, just the genus name. Genus species.
Legionella has a pretty interesting life-cycle(lives in amoebas, uses their cysts to circumvent water treatment and then can infect people from water that is "clean"). Discovered (or at least recognized as a pathogen) in Philly sometime in the 70's.
My favorite: Naegleria fowleri.
Others: Parelaphostrongylus tenuis, Stephanurus dentatus, Syngamus trachea, Haemonchus contortus, Cuterebra spp., Bacillus anthracis, any of the nematomorphs (Gordian worms)...
Others: Parelaphostrongylus tenuis, Stephanurus dentatus, Syngamus trachea, Haemonchus contortus, Cuterebra spp., Bacillus anthracis, any of the nematomorphs (Gordian worms)...
Filarial nematodes! You can write about Lymphatic filariasis aka Elephantiasis!
Parasitology is so fascinating!! Love it.
Parasitology is so fascinating!! Love it.
Damn you. Damn you to hell. That's my brain eating amoeba.
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Ahh - You guys are all missing the best one...
Hendra (or Nipha, can't remember which one it is) Virus. If memory serves me correctly, its pretty damn close to Canine Distemper Virus (Morbilliviruse/[SIZE=-1]Paramyxoviridae) and causes distemper like symptoms in humans (lecture told us a story of an Australian Vet who came down with it). While these particular lecturer can be a bit over dramatic - the symptoms following his death seemed quite grotesque and scary!
I am sure one of our Australian SDN'ers can shed some light on it - but its pretty damn cool, and not one many people outside Vet Med know about.
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Hendra (or Nipha, can't remember which one it is) Virus. If memory serves me correctly, its pretty damn close to Canine Distemper Virus (Morbilliviruse/[SIZE=-1]Paramyxoviridae) and causes distemper like symptoms in humans (lecture told us a story of an Australian Vet who came down with it). While these particular lecturer can be a bit over dramatic - the symptoms following his death seemed quite grotesque and scary!
I am sure one of our Australian SDN'ers can shed some light on it - but its pretty damn cool, and not one many people outside Vet Med know about.
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This is my favorite. I wrote a poem about it for my micro class for extra credit. It was pretty awesome. I never thought I'd write about poop in a poem, but...
Pretty sure the only reason you think its cool is because you're in america... (only half-joking here...)
He wasn't being dramatic. Hendra causes a horrible death - and death is almost assured. All 7 people who've ever been infected have been either vets, vet nurses or horse handlers, theres no treatment, no vaccination, and you can contract it from animals that barely seem sick. All of them have died, except one who has permanent brain damage. Its enough for me to safely say im never practicing equine med in Queensland. (I mean, besides the crappy hours and pay and crazy people, lol).
Any bacteria having to do with poop. Escherichia coli is an oldie but a goodie!
My favs: mouse pinworms (Aspiculuris tetraptera or Syphacia obvelata), Heliobacter, and B. fragilis
My favs: mouse pinworms (Aspiculuris tetraptera or Syphacia obvelata), Heliobacter, and B. fragilis
That reminds me! I completely forgot about hantavirus, aka why you don't trust wild rodents. Nasty stuff.
But they're such cute little buggers... and Naegleria fowleri and primary amoebic meningoencephalitis are so fun to say...
I love campylobacter! When I see the squigglies on cytologies, I get really excited!
this is what i was gonna say! i love toxo!!! so cool
My favorite is Tritrichomonas foetus with the Trypanosomes coming in second. Parasitology was my favorite vet school class to date 😀
I did my STAR project on Borrelia burgdorferi, it's one of my favorites as well! This Friday at the TG my poster will be hanging in Valley foyer somewhere, check it out.
