Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) baldness, thinning or loss of hair as a result of illness, functional disorder, or hereditary disposition; also known as alopecia. Male pattern baldness, a genetic trait, is the most common cause of b...

(Encyclopedia) scabies skāˈbēz [key], highly contagious parasitic skin disease caused by the itch mite (Sarcoptes scabiei). The disease is also known as itch. It is acquired through close contact with an infested...

(Encyclopedia) Greider, Carol Widney, 1961–, American molecular biologist, b. San Diego, Calif., Ph.D. Univ. of California, Berkeley, 1987. Greider was a researcher and professor at the Cold Spring Harbor Laborato...

(Encyclopedia) botulism bŏchˈəlĭzˌəm [key], acute poisoning resulting from ingestion of food containing toxins produced by the bacillus Clostridium botulinum. The bacterium can grow only in an anaerobic atmosp...

(Encyclopedia) congestive heart failure, inability of the heart to expel sufficient blood to keep pace with the metabolic demands of the body. In the healthy individual the heart can tolerate large increases of work...

(Encyclopedia) whooping cough or pertussis, highly communicable infectious disease caused by the bacterium Bordetella pertussis. The early or catarrhal stage of whooping cough is manifested by the usual symptoms of ...

(Encyclopedia) South Dakota State University, at Brookings; land-grant support; coeducational; chartered 1883 as Dakota Agricultural College, opened 1884. In 1907 it became South Dakota State College of Agriculture ...

(Encyclopedia) Ebola virus ēbōˈlə [key], a virus of the genus Ebolavirus, which belongs to a family (Filoviridae) of RNA viruses that cause hemorrhagic fevers. The viruses, named for a river in Congo (Kinshasa) ...

(Encyclopedia) cystic fibrosis sĭsˈtĭk fībrōˈsĭs [key], inherited disorder of the exocrine glands (see gland), affecting children and young people; median survival is 25 years in females and 30 years in males...

(Encyclopedia) Zika virus zēˈkə [key], single-stranded RNA virus of the genus flavivirus that infects human and primates and causes a disease known as Zika fever or zika. It is primarily transmitted by the bite o...