Tuesday, 16 April 2013

Relationship With Humans

Cyanobacteria have the potential to cause disease in humans. They can also produce lethal toxins, for example, peptide toxins which can poison, cause diarrhoea and vomiting, cold extremities, and death.
If a human comes in contact with Cyanobateria's algal blooms, they risk the possibility of developing allergic rhinitis, conjunctivitis or dermatitis.

Some positive aspects of Cyanobacteria's existence come from the Proterozoic era where Cyanobacteria were responsible for many oil deposits, thus benefiting humans.
During the same era, many Cyanobacteria generated oxygen that allowed humans to breathe, by their synthesizing of organic compounds from water into carbon dioxide, and releasing of oxygen through the process of photosynthesis.Before this, earth's atmosphere was unsuitable for living things, due to its lack of oxygen. Lastly, through acting as providers of nitrogen fertilizer, Cyanobacteria enabled the cultivation of rice and beans, a food source for humans.


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