← Back to catalogue
Research draft

host organism

vr.tr.host-organism · PHY.LIV

Let an agent explain host organisms, relay host categories, host-parasite relationships and relevance to disease and ecology from parasitology and ecology sources, describe the named terms, and distinguish hosts from vectors, parasites, symbionts as partners and carriers.

Thing Registry Physical world and living systems

Research draft, second pass

A second pass drafted this model: the structure a model of this thing needs, and what is known about it in the world. The line under this one says how the second half was obtained - researched against sources, or recalled without web access, in which case nothing here was read anywhere and every claim is a lead to verify. Unreviewed either way.

written by Claude from model knowledge without web access - no source was read, every claim is a lead to verify

Researched by: Claude

Purpose and description

Let an agent explain host organisms, relay host categories, host-parasite relationships and relevance to disease and ecology from parasitology and ecology sources, describe the named terms, and distinguish hosts from vectors, parasites, symbionts as partners and carriers.

An organism that harbours another organism, such as a parasite, symbiont, pathogen or commensal, providing nourishment, shelter or a site for reproduction, with terms the registry aliases name including the definitive host, in which a parasite reaches sexual maturity, larval and adult hosts, host plants on which herbivorous insects such as butterfly caterpillars feed, and the type host, from which a parasite species was first described; intermediate, paratenic and reservoir hosts are further categories, and host range and host switching matter for disease emergence and biological control. Zoonotic diseases pass from animal hosts to humans.

What it is for: Describing organisms that harbour others.

It can be explain host categories; relay host-parasite ecology; describe named terms; relay relevance to disease.

Distinguishing features

Relational role

Multiple host categories

Host specificity

Disease relevance

What it looks like

Any organism; examples include snails hosting flukes and milkweed hosting monarch caterpillars.

Physical character

definitive host of Plasmodium: Anopheles mosquito note - sexual reproduction there

monarch butterfly host plants: milkweeds note

registry parent: organism note

How it is recognised

Organism harbouring another organism

Host plant, type host, definitive host, host animal, adult host, larval host

Vectors transmit pathogens; parasites live on hosts; symbionts are partners; carriers may be infected without disease

Related models

is a kind of - in registry terms, role

organism

harbours -

parasite

is contrasted with -

vector

is related to -

zoonosis

In practice

Families and kinds

definitive hosts

intermediate hosts

paratenic hosts

reservoir hosts

host plants

Standards and regulation

One Health approaches

Biological control regulations on host range testing

Failure modes and hazards

Confusing hosts and vectors

Zoonotic spillover

Non-target effects in biological control

Also called

host planttype hostdefinitive hosthost animaladult hostlarval hostintermediate hostparatenic hostlarval host plant

Where this came from

wikidata · CC0 1.0

Drafted structure

Bundle to layer to finding to question, as the second pass will find it: 4 bundles · 8 layers · 8 findings · 16 questions.

Understand What a host is.

Science.

Definition

Definition.

Definition

Definition.

  1. What is a host organism, and how does it differ from vectors, parasites, symbionts and carriers? definition
  2. Is someone worried about an infection from an animal, in which case a doctor or public health service should advise? boundary

Terms

Named terms.

Terms

Terms.

  1. What are host plants, type hosts, definitive hosts, larval and adult hosts? definition
  2. Which entry fits the specific term? action
Parasitology Parasitology.

Science.

Life cycles

Life cycles.

Life cycles

Life cycles.

  1. How do parasites move between intermediate and definitive hosts? provenance
  2. Which references are standard? provenance

Specificity

Host specificity.

Specificity

Specificity.

  1. What determines host range and host switching? provenance
  2. Which sources are cited? provenance
Ecology Ecology.

Science.

Host plants

Host plants.

Host plants

Host plants.

  1. Why do many insects depend on specific host plants? provenance
  2. Which entry fits monarch butterfly? action

Biocontrol

Biological control.

Biocontrol

Biocontrol.

  1. How is host range tested before releasing biocontrol agents? provenance
  2. Is the presentation neutral and attributed? boundary
Context Disease.

Attribution.

Zoonoses

Reservoir hosts.

Zoonoses

Zoonoses.

  1. How do reservoir hosts contribute to zoonotic disease, as One Health sources describe? provenance
  2. Is the information current? boundary

Type host

Type hosts.

Type host

Type host.

  1. Why does the type host matter in parasite taxonomy? provenance
  2. Which entry fits type (biology)? action

What the second pass must settle

  • Should intermediate and definitive hosts be separate entries?
  • Should host plant be moved to entomology entries?
  • How should host-parasite databases be linked?