Infectious Agents Overview - Types and Transmission

Infectious agents are microorganisms or pathogens that can invade the body, multiply, and cause infections leading to diseases in hosts.
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Disease Transmission | Medical Pathology | Host-Pathogen Interactions | Disease-causing Agents | Infection Transmission
Prepared by Shruti Sahoo, reviewed by Dr. Eugene Smith

Infectious Agents FAQ


Image credit: mayoclinic.org

What is an example of an infectious agent?

Examples of infectious agents include bacteria, fungi, viruses, and parasites (helminths and protozoa). What are the 4 types of infectious agents? The 4 types of infectious agents are bacteria, virus, fungi, and parasites, which include helminths and protozoans. Infectious agents invade the host cells, replicate, and cause infections.

What is a fungal infectious agent?

Some of the fungal infectious agents include Aspergillus, Candida, and Pneumocystis. Viruses like coronavirus, adenovirus, and rhinovirus cause viral diseases. Parasites like plasmodium and Wuchereria bancrofti are common parasites carried by mosquitoes. Each of the infectious agents is described below.

What are the 5 types of infectious agents?

There are five major categories of infectious agents: Viruses, bacteria, fungi, protozoa, and helminths. Viruses are tiny, ranging in size from about 20 to 400 nanometers in diameter (see page 9). Billions can fit on the head of a pin.

How do infectious agents affect human health?

Learn more about infectious agents and their impact on human health with this curated resource collection. People get sick when another organism, big or small, invades their body and infects them. These infectious agents come in all shapes and sizes, and all of them pose different threats to the human body.

How do infectious agents enter the body?

Infectious agents can enter the body through the mouth or nose or even through bites or wounds. From bacteria to fungi to parasites that live off human bodies, understanding how these agents attack our bodies is the first step in developing treatments and cures for the infections they cause.

Infectious Agents References

If you want to know more about Infectious Agents, consider exploring links below:

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