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by fnj 3597 days ago
Since the definitions of pathogen is not just "microorganism", but "microorganism that can cause disease", the idea of "beneficial pathogen" appears to be a contradiction in terms.

That said, hormesis is a conceivable factor.

1 comments

Yes. What if mosquitoes inoculate us (and/or other animals) against diseases during childhood? Absent mosquitoes, I wonder if we would become more vulnerable to those diseases entering our systems through other vectors.