Periodicals>Journal Article: Herrera, Ana (16-May-2011), Species are to ecosystems as cells are to the human body, according to a mathematical model, Carlos III University of Madrid , Retrieved on 2011-05-17Source Material [www.eurekalert.org]
Folksonomies: gaia Memes
17 MAY 2011
Seeing the Species for the Ecosystem
The authors comment that from this perspective, it could be stated that multiccellular beings are also ecosystems. That is, we are formed by different types of cells that cooperate and compete for resources; we are colonized by diverse types of bacteria (in the intestines, in the skin, etc.) whose activity is linked to other processes in our organism: we are invaded by viruses, which can be harmful or can take part in processes that regulate our DNA. "These beings are constantly being changed...It is helpful to think of species in the context of the ecosystem in which they live, as they are an part of it, indistinguishable from it in very important ways. Any single species' ecosystem includes all of the other species within it.