Diseases

A pathogen is a disease-causing organism. They are passed on from one host to another and
therefore the diseases they cause are known as transmissible diseases.

Examples of pathogens include bacterium, virus, fungus or protoctist.

Pathogens can be passed on from host to host in different ways, including:

o Direct contact - the pathogen is passed directly from one host to another by transfer of body
fluids such as blood or semen (eg HIV, gonorrhea, syphilis)
o Indirect contact - the pathogen leaves the host and is carried in some way to another,
uninfected individual including from contaminated surfaces or food, from animals, or from the
air Examples inhaling contaiminated droplets released by the infected person into the air during
coughing or sneezing.

Methods of transmission Examples of diseases spread in this way

Droplets in air Common cold, influenza , covid 19
Food or water Cholera
Through vectors malaria
Sexual intercourse with an infected Syphilis, AIDS, gonorrhea
person
Touching contaminated surfaces Salmonella

A non transmissible disease (non-communicable disease) is one which is not caused by a

pathogen and cannot be transmitted from one person to another. Examples include diabetes,
lung cancer and coronary heart disease.

Transmission of pathogen

A variety of mechanisms protect us against infectious diseases:

a. Physical barrier

(i) The skin serves as the primary physical barrier to entry of pathogens into the body. Physical
barrier: Cornified layer of the epidermis consisting of dead cells prevent microbes passing
through and those trapped are removed from the body as the cornified layer is removed.

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 {ii) Hairs in the nose act as a physical barrier to infection. They filter air containing microbes,
dust and pollutants, preventing them from entering the lungs.

b. Chemical barrier: if there is a damage or cut in the skin, blood clotting occurs and a scab
is formed to prevent pathogens from getting into the body. Sebum produced by sebaceous
glands is antiseptic.

(ii) Mucus is a fluid produced by cells lining the air passages and contains a sticky substance called
mucus. It traps dust, pathogen in inhaled air preventing them from invading the body. The air
passages are also lined with cilia which sweep the mucus up the airways from the lungs.

(iii) Hydrochloric acid secreted by the stomach wall kills many bacteria

Cells
Different types of white blood cell work to prevent pathogens reaching areas of the body they
undergo
(i) phagocytosis - engulfing and digesting pathogenic cells
(ii) Lymphocytes produce antibodies - which clump pathogenic cells together so they can’t move
as easily (known as agglutination) and releasing chemicals that signal to other cells that they
must be destroyed.

➢ MALARIA

It is caused by a parasite called Plasmodium. It is a unicellular organism (protoctist)

What is a parasite?
It is an organism that lives in or on another living organism called the host and from which it
obtains food and shelter.

Malaria is a disease that is endemic in many tropical countries.

Transmission of malaria.
Malaria is transmitted by a vector; the female Anopheles mosquito. The female Anopheles
mosquito feeds on the blood of vertebrates which contain protein to nourish their eggs.
A vector is an organism that carries the disease-causing organisms.
• When a female mosquito bite a human being, it uses its proboscis to pierce the skin of its victim,
and at the same time secretes saliva into the wound. The saliva prevents the blood of the victim
to clot.

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 • The insect then sucks the blood. If the victim is an infected person, his blood contains the
malarial parasite, Plasmodium. In this way, the parasite enters the mosquito’s stomach.
• In the stomach wall of the mosquito, the parasite reproduces first sexually and then, asexually
to produce numerous young Plasmodium. The parasite travels to the mosquito’s salivary
glands. This mosquito is now ready to transmit the disease. If it bites an uninfected person, it
injects saliva containing Plasmodium into his blood stream to the liver cells and red blood cells
where it multiples. The person becomes infected with the disease.

Signs and Symptoms of malaria

Patients suffering from malaria have intermittent fever which occurs either every 48 hours or
72 hours.
The malaria parasite attacks liver cells and red blood cells. Inside these cells, the parasite
reproduces asexually. Thousands of them are released into the blood stream. The toxins
produced by the parasite in the blood stream causes fever. The patient could become anaemic.
Death may occur if untreated.

Methods of control of malaria.

Use of drugs against parasites:

i. Infected person could be treated with quinine or chloroquine.

ii. Uninfected persons could take preventive drugs (antimalarial drugs), e.g., paludrine.
Avoid being bitten by mosquitoes:
i. Sleep under a mosquito net as mosquitoes are most active at night.
ii. Use mosquito coils to repel mosquitoes or apply anti-mosquito cream on the skin.
iii. Wear clothes that cover most of the skin.
Reduce the number of mosquitoes:
i. Filling and draining of breeding places of mosquitoes.
ii. At home, water should not be allowed to collect in empty tins and other containers for too long
a period. (These first two measures are related to the fact that mosquitoes lay their eggs in
stagnant water.)
iii. Spraying of insecticides on walls of buildings, especially in dark corners in houses as
mosquitoes tend to rest in dark places.

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 iv. Spraying of oil on stagnant water. Mosquito larvae and pupae are killed since they are unable
to adhere to the surface to breathe
v. In ponds or lakes, fish may be introduced to feed on the mosquito larvae and pupae.
Stages of life cycle of the Anopheles mosquito:

There are 4 stages in the life cycle of mosquito: egg, larva, pupa and adult. The first three
stages occur in water.

Adult mosquitoes lay their eggs in bodies of water. They hang to the water surface in order to
breathe. They feed on aquatic microorganisms. The pupa also comes to the water surface to
breathe oxygen in the air. Finally, the mosquito emerges from the pupal stage.

Reasons for the world-wide concern over the spread of malaria

i. The plasmodium parasites are becoming more resistant to the drugs and insecticides such as
DDT.

ii. Climatic changes such as high humidity and high temperature favour the spread of mosquitoes.

iii. Migration of people as a result of social unrest and war.

➢ The Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS)

The causative agent is a virus called(HIV- human Immunodeficiency virus ) This virus destroys
the body’s immune system that protects the person against infection. Normally, when foreign
particles such as disease germs enter our blood stream, our white blood cells are able to identify
them. The lymphocytes are, then, stimulated to produce antibodies to destroy the germs. Such
an immune system protects our bodies against many diseases. However, the AIDS virus (HIV)
acts by destroying the victim’s immune system. His body is unable to produce sufficient

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antibodies to provide the immunity (i.e., immune deficiency) needed to protect him against
many other diseases. Therefore, infections which are normally mild may prove to be fatal to a
person with AIDS.

Signs and symptoms

Chronic or persistent fever;
Severe diarrhea lasting for months causing severe weight loss;
Pneumonia;
Kaposi’s sarcoma – cancer of the blood vessels;
Brain infection;
The word syndrome is given to AIDS because it is a disease which means ‘a group of sign and
symptoms that occur together) occurring at the same time. Victims of AIDS usually die within
2 years and at present there is no known cure.

Mode of Transmission of AIDS

1. Sexual intercourse with an infected person.
2. Sharing hypodermic needles with an infected person, for example, when drug addicts share
their needles. Needles used for tattooing, acupuncture or ear-piercing may transmit the disease
if they are not properly cleaned.
3. blood transfusion with blood from an infected person.

4. During pregnancy, the virus may pass from the infected mother to the foetus.
It must be emphasised that AIDS is NOT spread through toilet seats, door knobs, coughs,
swimming pools or mosquitoes.

Prevention and Control of AIDS

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 1. Keep to one sex partner and avoid polygamy
2. Males should wear a condom if they are not sure whether their partners or themselves are
infected with AIDS. This reduces the risk of infection.
3. Avoid drug abuse as drug addicts tend to share needles.
4. Avoid sharing instruments that are likely to break the skin and be contaminated with blood,
e.g., razors and toothbrushes.
5. If you require acupuncture, ear-piercing or tattooing, you should go to reliable operators.
Make sure that the needles are sterilised or insist on using disposable instruments.
Treatment:

There is no known cure so far and there is as yet no vaccine for HIV.
Drugs therapy can slow down the onset of AIDS preventing replication of the virus.
➢ CHOLERA

Causative agent: A bacterium Vibrio cholera

Transmission
Cholera is transmitted by the ingestion of water, or food that has been contaminated with faecal
material containing the pathogen. (food borne or water borne)

Some people infected with the bacterium show few if any symptoms. Some act as carriers,
unknowingly spreading the disease.

Site of action of the pathogen

Ans: wall of the small intestine

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 How does the bacterium cause
disease?
Lumen of small
intestine

Toxin
Cl- -
Cl
Chloride
Channel Cl - -
Cl

Water

V. cholerae can enter the body in contaminated food or water. To reach their site of action, the
bacteria have to pass through the stomach. If the contents are sufficiently acidic (<pH 4.5) the
bacteria is unlikely to survive. If the bacteria reach the small intestine they multiply and secrete
a toxin (toxic protein), choleragen, which has two sections:

• First section binds to specific carbohydrate on surface of intestines membrane (receptors)

• The other part enters the epithelial cells of the intestines wall, causing ion channels to open in
plasma membrane

• This allows chloride ions that normally held within the epithelial cells to leak into the lumen
of the intestines.

What do the chloride ions do?

• The loss of chloride ions from the damaged epithelial cells raises their water potential
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• The increase of chloride ions in the lumen of the intestines lowers its water potential

Where will water flow? Why?

• By diffusion, ions move into epithelial cells from the surrounding tissues including the blood

• Helping to establish a water potential gradient causing water to move by osmosis from the
blood and other tissues into intestines.

• This leads to diarrhoea and dehydration.

Symptoms

• Severe diarrhoea leading to dehydration, loss of water and salts, weakness, thirst, rapid heart
rate, Dry mucus membranes including the inside of the mouth, throat, nose, and eyelids,
Low blood pressure, thirst, Muscle cramps
If untreated, dehydration can lead to death in a matter of hours.
Prevention and control

Provision of clean, chlorinated water to avoid contamination with bacteria.

Health education campaigns to promote the adoption of good hygiene practices such as hand
washing with soap, safe preparation and storage of food and safe disposal of wastes and
sewage.

Set up sewage treatment plants to prevent contamination of water supply.

Treatment: Drink a solution of salts and glucose to rehydrate the body.