Biohazard is a threat arising from exposure to various pathogens. Violation of the normal functioning of the medical-social, technological, communal and agricultural sectors can provoke both a single prion and multicellular parasites.
To prevent the spread of harmful agents, a special biohazard sign is established in the places of their storage, production and use.
To date, various diseases pose a threat to human health and life. Many of them are transmitted or caused by various insects, parasitic plants and animals.
Biohazard is characterized by varying degrees and depends on the extent to which a harmful factor can harm a person.
The following organisms are common forms of hazardous biological agents:
- insects. So, mosquitoes become carriers of serious diseases - malaria, yellow fever, encephalitis. Flies carry various intestinal infections, and a flea bite can infect humans with plague.Ticks cause typhoid and relapsing fever, as well as scabies, which is often associated with other serious infections. It is worth noting that spiders in most cases do not pose a threat, but the black widow and hermit are exceptions. Fatal cases were recorded after bites of tarantulas;
- biohazards may concern scorpions. Their bites are not only very painful, but can be fatal. Even some types of caterpillars and centipedes can cause sharp pain and the formation of blisters on the skin, and in some cases provoke a fatal outcome (this applies to the so-called electric caterpillars that are found in Central America);
- leeches. With their bites, the wound can become infected, which leads to complications;
- worms that cause disturbances in the functioning of the digestive system, as well as anemia and general weakness;
- poisonous snakes and lizards. It is worth noting that biological danger can only be determined by lizards, which are common in desert zones. But, given their slow movement, the number of affected people is scanty.
A great threat to human life and health are various marine organisms - sharks, stingrays, jellyfish, as well as mammals (wild boars, lions and tigers, foxes and jackals, whose bites can cause rabies).
Threatening biological hazards are not only microorganisms, insects or animals of different levels of organization. These are also various poisonous plants that show their damaging effects when touched or when eaten. Among these plants, one should name the mangrove and black poisonous tree, Karas shrub, lacquered tree in Japan.
There are many more plants with stinging hairs. They cause pain when touched. Unpleasant sensations are associated with the action of formic acid, but these plants do not pose a threat to life. Despite this, contact with them should be avoided.