The term for organisms living on or inside another organism, often deriving benefits, is?

The term for organisms living on or inside another organism, often deriving benefits, is?

• A. Asymptomatic
• B. Staphylococci
• C. Parasites
• D. Infectious Disease

Answer: (C)

This describes parasitism, a relationship where one organism lives on or inside another organism and gains benefits at the host’s expense. The organism that benefits is a parasite, and the host can be harmed or weakened as a result. Examples include lice on a person’s skin, tapeworms in the gut, or malaria parasites inside red blood cells. The term isn’t about symptoms, as in asymptomatic, nor about a specific microbe like Staphylococci, and it isn’t simply the disease itself, which is the condition caused by the pathogen. Parasites can be endoparasites (inside the body) or ectoparasites (on the surface) and can be obligate or facultative in their need to parasitize.

This describes parasitism, a relationship where one organism lives on or inside another organism and gains benefits at the host’s expense. The organism that benefits is a parasite, and the host can be harmed or weakened as a result. Examples include lice on a person’s skin, tapeworms in the gut, or malaria parasites inside red blood cells. The term isn’t about symptoms, as in asymptomatic, nor about a specific microbe like Staphylococci, and it isn’t simply the disease itself, which is the condition caused by the pathogen. Parasites can be endoparasites (inside the body) or ectoparasites (on the surface) and can be obligate or facultative in their need to parasitize.