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Infection01:20

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When a pathogen enters the body and reproduces, it can cause an infection, damage body cells, and cause illness symptoms that eventually lead to disease. Therefore, its prevention requires breaking the chain of infection.
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Once a ligand binds to a receptor, the signal is transmitted through the membrane and into the cytoplasm. The continuation of a signal in this manner is called signal transduction. Signal transduction only occurs with cell-surface receptors, which cannot interact with most components of the cell, such as DNA. Only internal receptors can interact directly with DNA in the nucleus to initiate protein synthesis. When a ligand binds to its receptor, conformational changes occur that affect the...
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When a ligand binds to a cell-surface receptor, the receptor's intracellular domain changes shape, which may either activate its enzyme function or allow its binding to other molecules. The initial signal is amplified by most signal transduction pathways. This means that a single ligand molecule can activate multiple molecules of a downstream target. Proteins that relay a signal are most commonly phosphorylated at one or more sites, activating or inactivating the protein. Kinases catalyze...
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Trophic Efficiency00:46

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Trophic level transfer efficiency (TLTE) is a measure of the total energy transfer from one trophic level to the next. Due to extensive energy loss as metabolic heat, an average of only 10% of the original energy obtained is passed on to the next level. This pattern of energy loss severely limits the possible number of trophic levels in a food chain.
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Trophic Levels01:35

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The immune system's response to viral infections is a complex and coordinated process involving natural killer (NK) cells, T cell-mediated responses, and antibody-mediated responses.
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Immunometabolic Circuits in Infection for Advancing Host Directed Therapies
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Immunometabolic Circuits in Infection for Advancing Host Directed Therapies

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Infectious Agents Trigger Trophic Cascades.

Julia C Buck1, William J Ripple2

  • 1Marine Science Institute, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA; Ecology, Evolution and Marine Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA.

Trends in Ecology & Evolution
|July 25, 2017
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Infectious agents, like predators, can trigger trophic cascades in ecosystems. The study synthesizes literature, showing cascade frequency correlates with consumer lethality, unifying parasite-host and predator-prey dynamics.

Keywords:
biological controlconsumer strategykeystonenatural enemytop-down regulationtritrophic

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Area of Science:

  • Ecology
  • Evolutionary Biology
  • Parasitology

Background:

  • Trophic cascades are typically initiated by predators, influencing ecosystem dynamics through top-down effects.
  • Infectious agents, including parasites and pathogens, can also exert significant indirect effects on ecosystems.
  • Existing ecological frameworks often separate predator-prey and parasite-host interactions.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To synthesize existing literature on trophic cascades initiated by infectious agents.
  • To compare the mechanisms of trophic cascades caused by infectious agents versus predators.
  • To propose a unified consumer-resource framework for ecological interactions.

Main Methods:

  • Literature synthesis and meta-analysis of studies on infectious agents causing trophic cascades.
  • Categorization of infectious agents based on their ecological roles (e.g., parasitoids, pathogens).
  • Analysis of indirect effects (density-mediated and trait-mediated) caused by infectious agents.

Main Results:

  • Infectious agents can induce both density-mediated and trait-mediated indirect effects, similar to predators.
  • Non-lethal or sub-lethal effects of infectious agents can uniquely trigger trait-mediated cascades.
  • The frequency of reported trophic cascades scales with the lethality of the consumer (infectious agent or predator).

Conclusions:

  • Infectious agents are significant drivers of trophic cascades, expanding our understanding beyond predator-initiated effects.
  • A unified consumer-resource framework can better integrate predator-prey and parasite-host dynamics.
  • Recognizing infectious agents as key ecological interactors enhances ecosystem management and conservation strategies.