Evolutionary Medicine
It's an adaptive way for our body to flush our pathogens.
What is an adaptive trait?
Trait that provides higher fitness to the individual in a specific environment
What is artificial selection?
Mechanism of evolution under domestication.
Humans “select” desired traits, and “weed out” undesired traits.
What are the non-mineral nutrients in an ecosystem?
carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen (CHO)
What is a pool?
where nutrients reside for varying amounts of time (the residence time).
What are antibodies?
cells produced by our immune system to kill pathogens
Name an example of adaptive trait.
When does natural selection occur?
1. Heritable traits
2. Variation in traits
3. Not all individuals are equally successful
at survival and reproduction
What are the mineral nutrients?
nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium, calcium (N, P, K, Mg, Ca).
What is a source?
a pool that releases more nutrients than it accepts
Name some characteristics of developing countries.
-Large family size
• Rural homes, livestock
• Intestinal microbial
community: variable
• Low antibiotic use
• Poor sanitation, high
orofecal contamination
T
Darwin described evolution as descent with modification. This is..
Within population: each generation is
different from previous
Species change through time
What is the difference between hypoxia and anoxia?
Depletion of oxygen vs no oxygen.
What is a sink?
a pool that accepts more nutrients than it releases
Name some characteristics of developed countries (Westernized).
• Small family size
• Affluent urban homes
• Intestinal microbial
community: stable
• High antibiotic use
• Good sanitation, low
orofecal contamination
Does natural selection produce the perfect organism?
No!
Success is..
because of having certain heritable traits
What is a productivity in an ecosystem?
How much biomass is accumulated over time. Generally primary production.
What is flux?
the rate at which
materials move between pools
• Can change over time
• Can be influenced by
human activities
TRUE OR FALSE: Mammalian and human immune systems evolved in a pathogen rich environment.
TRUE.
T.
What is an example of an animal that has been artifically selected?
Pigs, sheeps, horses, etc.
What is eutrophication?
Excess nutrients/ nutrient pollution in aquatic
systems.
Breakdown biogeochemical.
BIO - Life
GEO - Rock, Earth.
CHEMICAL - Chemicals