Question

Which of the following is a bacterial disease?
A. Anthrax
B. Rinderpest
C. Tick fever
D. Coccidiosis

Answer 1

Bacteria are prokaryotic organisms. Most of them are either harmless or beneficial while few are pathogenic. The pathogenic species cause a number of diseases in humans and other organisms like plants and animals also.

Complete answer:
Any disease as a result of bacterial infection is known as a bacterial disease. Most bacterial diseases are infectious in nature. A bacterial infection often produces localized symptoms like redness, heat, swelling and pain that is in a specific part of the body. Anthrax is an infectious disease caused by the big spore forming gram positive bacteria, Bacillus anthracis. It is a zoonotic disease as it is normally found to infect animals but may get transmitted to humans through animals either directly from infected animals or during the handling of contaminated animal products.
The disease is commonly spread when anthrax spores are ingested or inhaled or when abrasions or cuts on skin get exposed to spores. The spores then germinate, multiply and produce toxin in the body. Insects are also responsible for the transmission of the bacterium between animals. In humans, anthrax can cause infection in three ways - Cutaneous, Gastrointestinal and pulmonary anthrax.

Hence, the correct answer is option (A).

Additional information:
Rinderpest is a viral disease which causes plague among cattle. It is a contagious disease caused by a virus Morbillivirus belonging to the family Paramyxoviridae. Tick Fever is an infection caused by the bite of a tick which are in fact Arachnids. They cause redness or a rash on the skin. Coccidiosis is a parasitic infection affecting the intestinal tracts of animals. It is caused by a protozoan called coccidia.

Note: Symptoms of anthrax include skin ulcers or difficulty in breathing. Generally, antibiotics are used for its treatment. Nowadays, vaccines for Anthrax are available for both animals and humans. Veterinary vaccines for livestock are used for the control of anthrax.