Std’s: Bacterial, Viral, and Fungal

Introduction

In this paper there will be important key topics to talk about. STD’s or sexual transmitted diseases. Millions of people around the world suffer from STD’s. An STD is an infection transmitted by a form of sexual contact that are caused by bacteria, viruses, or fungal. These types of diseases may not be curable, but they can be treatable. However, they can affect your daily life forever if it is not treated. Some of them may even be considered deadly if they are not taken seriously. There are different kinds of STD’s in the world. Starting from bacterial to viral to fungal. This paper will specifically cover all three types of STD’s. Each type of STD will be looked and explained as to where they start, what can be done to prevent it from spreading and if there are any treatments. Starting with bacterial STD’s otherwise known as STI’s or Sextual transmitted infections can included chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis. Then moving on to viral STD’s that include hepatitis B, herpes, HIV, and the human papilloma virus (HPV). And final fungal STD’s that include parasites and yeast infection.

Bacterial STD’s

A bacteria is part of a group of unicellular microorganisms that have cell walls but they however lack organelles and nucleus that cause diseases. The structure of a bacteria is a gel-like substance that are composed of water, enzymes, nutrients, and gases. They contain all the cell structures that true cell has but, like mentioned before, they don’t have a membrane enclosed nucleus.

The reproduction of bacteria is caused by Binary Fission. During this phase the chromosome copies itself which later forms as two identical copies. The cell will grow and will divide itself into two new daughter cells. These two daughter cells will be identical to the parent cell. This whole process can happen in less than five minutes which can result in a bacterial colony. A bacteria’s life span can be determined in four factors. These factors include the lag phase, log or exponential phase, the stationary phase and lastly, the death phase. During the lag phase the bacteria does not grow. What it does is that it tries to adjust to its environment. It tries to also produce vitamins and amino acids that are used for division. Once this is done, they can make copies of their DNA. If the environment is suitable for them then the lag phase can be very short and can move on to the next phase. In the log or exponential phase, the bacterial will multiply itself rapidly. For some it may take minutes and for others it may take days. This is a procced mention before as Binary Fission. In the stationary phase the bacteria will decrease in size due to the minimum space provided to grow. Finally, in the death phase the bacteria dies as it loses all the ability to reproduce. This, just like the earlier phase, may take minutes or days. This however will happen if the bacteria has not yet found a new environment to reproduce.

One type of bacterial STD is Chlamydia. This bacterial STD or STI can be preventable and it is the result of the Chlamydia trachomatis bacterium that can only affect the urethra and the cervix. This disease is common between the ages of fifteen to nineteen. This disease however, may not show any signs of symptoms what so ever. It can take several weeks to notice signs of Chlamydia. These signs may include pain during urination, pain during sex, abnormal discharge, frequent urge of urination and at times pelvic pain. Luckily this disease is also treatable. It can be treated by antibiotics. These medications can be 95% effective. But it will take time for the medication to work depending on how the disease progressed.

Viral STD’s

A virus are small infectious agent that only replicates inside the living cells of an organism. They can infect all types of life forms. They can go from animals and plants to microorganisms in which they include bacteria and archaea. They cannot reproduce by itself.

Most of these infectious agents contain RNA or DNA as a genetic material. Their nucleic acid may even be single or double-standard. They also have something that is called virion. Virion is an infectious viral particle which consists of nucleic acid and an outer shell of protein. One simple virus can contain enough RNA or DNA to encrypt up to four proteins. Other more complex viruses can encrypt up to one hundred to two hundred proteins.

The reproduction of a virus can happen in two ways. One being the lytic cycle and the other being lysogenic cycle. In the lytic cycle the virus gets attached to the host cell. Once its attached then the nucleic acids takes over the function of the host cell to produce multiple copies of itself creating new viruses. As the host cells get filled up with new viruses it will end up bursting. The host cell will eventually die and the viruses is in a search of a new host cell. During the lysogenic cycle however, when the virus enters the host cell it can be inactive for years. During this time, the nucleic acid becomes part of the chromosomes in the host cell but it doesn’t affect its functions. Once the viral acid becomes active, it will separate itself from the host genetic material and it will take over its function to produce more viral cells and destroy the host cell. The lifespan of a virus is strictly based on the environment and on the type of virus. Depending on the type of virus can depend on its lifespan. Some may last weeks, some may last year, others may even last seconds. It is undetermined for sure how long a virus may last but humidity plays a huge role in its survival.

One type of viral STD that is very well known is HIV or Human Immunodeficiency Virus. HIV can harm your immune system by basically destroying all the white cells in the body that help fight infections. This puts a person at risk to many health problems. In some cases, not all, HIV can result to AIDS. HIV is spread often through unprotected sex or sometimes by used or shared drug needles. A mother can also give their child HIV by childbirth. HIV first symptoms may be swollen glands which can last from two to four weeks, other severe symptoms however, may not appear until years later. There is no cure for this virus but there are medications that can help fight HIV infections and lower the risk of infecting other but it’s a life long medication.

Fungual STD’s

A fungi is the plural form of fungus. There is almost 144,000 known species of fungus. They are any spore- producing organisms that feeds on organic matter. They can live in many places like in air, water, plants and even humans have them. The main body of most fungi can be made up of thin, branched, colorless threads call hyphae. Each fungus can carry vast majority of hyphae. All of them intertwine to make a tangled web called mycelium. Their cell walls are made up of chitin. There are also five types of fungi: Chytridiomycota, Zygomycota, Glomeromycota, Ascomycota, and Basidiomycota.

Fungi can reproduce asexually or sexually and at times they can do both. When they do both, they produce spores that disperse from the parent organism. This is then taken away by wind or they can easily get attached to animals. During asexual reproduction they will produce by fragmentation, budding, or by spores. The most common form is by spores that can only be produced by the parent organism through mitosis which are identical to the parent organism. The spores will eventually spread to attach itself to newer environment. Then there is sexual reproduction. During sexual reproduction there are three stages. In the first stage two haploid cells will fuse together to have two haploid nuclei exist in a single cell. Then the haploid nuclei will fuse together again to form a diploid zygote nucleus. Finally, meiosis will occur. In addition to this, the spores are dispersed through the environment.

Just like a virus a fungus can its lifespan determined by the type and by the environment. Some fungus can live up to days others can live up to a week or sometimes a month. Regardless fungus has very short lifespans. They begin in spores and can last until germination. One commonly known fungal STD is yeast infection otherwise known as Candidiasis. Yeast infection are caused by and imbalance, or overgrowth, amount if candida. A vagina naturally contains a good amount of candida and bacteria. Once there is an overgrowth it produces a yeast infection. The symptoms include irritation, cotton cheese-like odorless discharge and itchiness in the vagina and the vulva. Fortunately, this infection is treatable. If the yeast infection is mild, then it may go away in its own. However, if it continues there are over the counter medications that can help with. Another option is to go to the doctors, and they can prescribe and oral medication to help with the yeast infection.

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