Learn What is a Parasite? It’s Types & Characteristics- Class 12 Biology
What is a Parasite? Types & Characteristics :- The word “parasite” comes from the Greek “parasitos”, with parameaning “alongside“, and sitos meaning “food” – therefore meaning “eating at the side of, as one would when seated at the same table”
A parasite is an organism that lives in/on another organism, called the host, and often harms it. It is dependent on its host for survival – it has to be in the host to live, grow and multiply. A parasite cannot live independently. Parasites are an incredibly varied group of organisms. Around 70% of parasites are microscopic in size, such as the malarial parasite; however, some worm parasites can reach over 30 m in length.
There are three main types of parasites that cause diseases, they are :-
- PROTOZOA (cause protozoan infection) – Protozoa are microscopic, one-celled organisms that can be free-living or parasitic in nature. They are able to multiply in humans, which contributes to their survival and also gives rise to infections from just a single organism. Transmission of protozoa that live in a human’s intestine to another human typically occurs through a fecal matter or through oral route (for example, contaminated food or water or person-to-person contact). Protozoa that live in the blood or tissue of humans are transmitted to other humans by an arthropod vector (for example, through the bite of a mosquito or sand fly).
The protozoa that are infectious to humans can be classified into four groups based on their mode of movement:
- Sarcodina – the ameba, e.g., Entamoeba
- Mastigophora – the flagellates, e.g., Giardia, Leishmania
- Ciliophora – the ciliates, e.g., Balantidium
- Sporozoa – organisms whose adult stage is not motile e.g., Plasmodium, Cryptosporidium
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