In Terms of Community Ecology, Why Are Pathogens Often More

question 28

Multiple Choice

In terms of community ecology, why are pathogens often more virulent now than in the past?

• A) More new pathogens have recently evolved.
• B) Host organisms have become more susceptible because of weakened immune systems.
• C) Human activities are transporting pathogens into new habitats (or communities) at an unprecedented rate.
• D) Medicines for treating pathogenic disease are in short supply.

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Definitions:

Somatoform Disorders

A group of psychological disorders in which patients experience physical symptoms that have no identifiable physical cause.

Hypochondriasis

A psychological disorder wherein an individual is excessively worried about having a serious illness, often misinterpreting normal bodily functions as symptoms of serious conditions.

Conversion Disorder

A mental condition in which a person experiences physical neurological symptoms, such as blindness or paralysis, without a physical cause, believed to stem from emotional conflict.

Catatonic Schizophrenia

A subtype of schizophrenia characterized by significant motor disturbances, ranging from physical immobility to excessive motor activity, and often accompanied by other symptoms such as echolalia or echopraxia.