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When and how did humans begin to discover how to control bacteria and viruses?
Wiki User
∙ 10y ago
It was not so long ago that people realized that microbes even existed. Anton van Leeuwenhoek was the first person to see bacteria during the 1660s. He had ground magnifying lenses and was interested that he could see small microbes. For almost two centuries, the knowledge was regarded as an interesting but rather irrelevant fact.
The germ theory of disease was not really fully developed until the 1870s but, 30 years before this, a doctor in Vienna called Ignaz Semmelweis noted a disease called child-bed fever was passed from one mother to another by doctors not washing their hands.
Louis Pasteur and Robert Koch in the 1860s and 1870s finalized the Germ Theory of Disease. Both realized that boiling broth and covering it tightly kept out spoiling microbes.
You have to see that this was only about 140 years ago. Antibiotics were only available since the 1940's (Penicillin).
As for viruses, they were first discovered later as they are so small. Beijerinck investigated the cause of tobacco mosaic virus in the late 1800's but he could not see them but did prove something smaller than a bacteria caused this TMV.
Wiki User
∙ 10y ago
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How can viruses be helpful?
Viruses that are harmless to humans can be used to infect bacteria or other pests eg rabbits
What kind of viruses infect humans?
Bacteria,fungi,or parasitic worms invade the human body.
Compare and contrast bacteria and viruses?
Viruses are considerably smaller then bacteria. Instead of being a living cell able to undergo a life cycle on their own (bacteria can do this), they must take over the cell processes of another cell in order to reproduce. Viruses and bacteria are similar in that they both need a suitable environment to survive. Bacteria and viruses are both pathogenic (disease causing) to humans. Bacteria are killed by antibiotics. While viruses are not.
Similarities between bacteria and virus?
The similarities of viruses and bacteria (plural of bacterium) are that both have DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) or RNA (ribonucleic acid) within their cell walls. Both cause disease, which is a big problem.
Is pneumonia a Viral or Bacterial?
Pneumonia simply means "inflammation of the lung" - it can be caused by viruses, bacteria, fungi, chemicals, inhaled foreign material or auto-immune disease. However, in humans with no other concurrent health concern, pneumonia tends to be caused by a bacteria.
How can viruses be helpful?
Viruses that are harmless to humans can be used to infect bacteria or other pests eg rabbits
How can some viruses be helpful?
Some viruses target bacteria or fungi, which can be harmful to humans. These viruses are called "bacteriophages" or sometimes just "phages".
How does the microscope help humans?
Microscopes help humans by magnifying by many times things which would normally not be visible to the human eye, such as bacteria, viruses, protons, atoms etc. How it helps, is by viewing such things, we learn their behaviour and therefore how to control or use them. Developing drugs to combat viruses etc..
What order do these micro organisms go in elephants yeast humans earthworms daffodils bacteria viruses from biggest to smallest?
elephants humans dafffodils earth worms yeast bacteria virus
Why are viruses thought to be one of the greatest threats to human dominance of the planet?
Viruses are considered to be a serious threat to humans because they are very difficult to control. Very few things can control viruses except antivirals.
What kind of viruses infect humans?
Bacteria,fungi,or parasitic worms invade the human body.
What are the main differences between a virus and a bacteria which enable scientists to classify them?
Bacteria are single-celled organisms that can replicate themselves. By this, I mean that they have all the genetic material to replicate (DNA & RNA). Viruses, in contrast, contain a piece of genetic material that is encapsulated by a protein coat known as a capsid. Because viruses only have a portion of genetic material, they have to infect a host organism and inject its material into the host and use the host to do the work for the virus. Since bacteria can "live" on its own and viruses cannot, bacterial infections can be treated with medications while viral cannot. In comparison of size, viruses are about 100 times smaller than bacteria. About of 90% of known bacteria live in a symbiotic relationship with humans. This means that the presence of bacteria is beneficial to both the bacteria and humans. In comparison, most viruses feed of the host to produce more viruses... therefore having no benefit to the host.
What order do these micro-organisms go in elephants yeast humans earthworms daffodils bacteria viruses from biggest to smallest?
himans
What is the functions of mucous?
Mucus is found in the respiratory system of humans. The function of mucus is to protect the body from infectious agents such as viruses and bacteria.
What are the effect of bacilli viruses?
Bacilli viruses are simply viruses that have a rod-like shape to them. Recently, one of the bacilli viruses has become very famous; Bacillus anthracis which is a bacterium that is commonly known anthrax. This deadly bacteria is dangerous because of its ability to produce endospores which is how bacteria protect themselves, giving them a longer life. Many bio-weapons use bacilli viruses and these can kill humans in various ways.
What is the meaning of the word pathogen?
A pathogen is a microorganism that can cause disease in its host. This includes bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites that can infect humans, animals, and plants.
What are the sources of genetic variation in bacteria and humans?
The most important source of variability in bacteria is mutation.
