1. Ecology is the study of the relationships between living things and their environment. It includes the relationships between species as well as their interactions with abiotic environmental factors. 2. There are several subfields of ecology including plant ecology, animal ecology, microbial ecology, and environmental science which focuses on environmental protection. 3. Ecology is applied in various medical fields to understand the genetic and environmental causes of diseases and their transmission. Key ecological concepts like populations, ecosystems, food webs, and interspecific relationships are important in medicine.

1. Ecology I. Introduction to ecology

5. Genetic and environmental background of diseases INHERITANCE ENVIRONMENT (genetic factors) (environmental factors) Diabetes mellitus Tumor diseases Phenylketonuria Injuries Infections Cystic fibrosis Intoxications Color blindness Deafness

6. Basic ecological terms

9. Ecosystem Abiotic factors Community Population of species A Population of species B Population of species C

10. Food web (trophic „chain“) Producers (green plants, algae, autotrophic bacteria) Primary consumers (herbivores) Secodary consumers (carnivores) Decomposers (heterotrophic bacteria, fungi) Decay of organic matter Release of inorganic nutrients Solar energy

11. Energy flow within food web Biomass of producers Biomass of primary consumers Loss of energy Loss of energy Biomass of secondary consumers

12. Interspecific relations – + Competition – + Predation – + Parasitism Species A produces compounds harmful for species B – 0 (+?) Allelopathy (inhibition) Closed relation + + Mutualism („symbiosis“) Free relation + + Protocooperation 0 + Commensalism No relation, neither effects the other 0 0 Neutralism Species B Species A Relation

13. Commensalism: One species benefits, the other doesn't but is not harmed .

14. Interspecific relations – + Competition – + Predation – + Parasitism Species A produces compounds harmful for species B – 0 (+?) Allelopathy (inhibition) Closed relation + + Mutualism („symbiosis“) Free relation + + Protocooperation 0 + Commensalism No relation, neither effects the other 0 0 Neutralism Species B Species A Relation

15. Protocooperation A hermit crab and the sea anemone

16. Interspecific relations – + Competition – + Predation – + Parasitism Species A produces compounds harmful for species B – 0 (+?) Allelopathy (inhibition) Closed relation + + Mutualism („symbiosis“) Free relation + + Protocooperation 0 + Commensalism No relation, neither effects the other 0 0 Neutralism Species B Species A Relation

18. Another example of mutualism - lichens

19. Interspecific relations – + Competition – + Predation – + Parasitism Species A produces compounds harmful for species B . „ antibiosis“ – 0 (+?) Allelopathy (inhibition) Closed relation + + Mutualism („symbiosis“) Free relation + + Protocooperation 0 + Commensalism No relation, neither effects the other 0 0 Neutralism Species B Species A Relation

20. Antibiosis Epicoccum nigrum and Sclerotinia sclerotiorum Antibiosis test of bacteria

21. Interspecific relations – + Competition – + Predation – + Parasitism Species A produces compounds harmful for species B . „ antibiosis“ – 0 (+?) Allelopathy (inhibition) Closed relation + + Mutualism („symbiosis“) Free relation + + Protocooperation 0 + Commensalism No relation, neither effects the other 0 0 Neutralism Species B Species A Relation

24. Plasmodium – a typical parasite transmitted by mosquito