Ecotropism or ecotropic (from ''eco'' – hearth and ''tropic'' – to turn towards) refers to the philosophy that for human culture to be healthy, it must exist as in an ecological niche and thereby relate appropriately with all the fields of forces of nature, organic and inorganic. The following form of the term has been used since 1990 in the publication of "Toward an Ecotropic Poetry" Published by The Open Theatre, Austin Tx 1990, written by John Campion and John Herndon.
Ecotropism can also indicate that a
pathogen
In biology, a pathogen ( el, πάθος, "suffering", "passion" and , "producer of") in the oldest and broadest sense, is any organism or agent that can produce disease. A pathogen may also be referred to as an infectious agent, or simply a germ ...
, like a
virus
A virus is a submicroscopic infectious agent that replicates only inside the living cells of an organism. Viruses infect all life forms, from animals and plants to microorganisms, including bacteria and archaea.
Since Dmitri Ivanovsky's 1 ...
or a
bacterium
Bacteria (; singular: bacterium) are ubiquitous, mostly free-living organisms often consisting of one biological cell. They constitute a large domain of prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micrometres in length, bacteria were among ...
, has a narrow
host range
In biology and medicine, a host is a larger organism that harbours a smaller organism; whether a parasitic, a mutualistic, or a commensalist ''guest'' (symbiont). The guest is typically provided with nourishment and shelter. Examples include a ...
and can
infect
An infection is the invasion of tissues by pathogens, their multiplication, and the reaction of host tissues to the infectious agent and the toxins they produce. An infectious disease, also known as a transmissible disease or communicable dis ...
one or a small group of
species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...
or
cell culture
Cell culture or tissue culture is the process by which cells are grown under controlled conditions, generally outside of their natural environment. The term "tissue culture" was coined by American pathologist Montrose Thomas Burrows. This te ...
lines.
See also
*
Tropism
A tropism is a biological phenomenon, indicating growth or turning movement of a biological organism, usually a plant, in response to an environmental stimulus. In tropisms, this response is dependent on the direction of the stimulus (as oppose ...
, a list of tropisms
*
Amphotropism
Amphotropism or amphotropic indicates that a pathogen like a virus or a bacterium has a wide host range and can infect more than one species or cell culture line.
See also
* Tropism
A tropism is a biological phenomenon, indicating growth or ...
, indicating a wide host range
*
, link to early ecotropic essay and ecotropic concepts
References
Virology
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