Question

arianne recently traveled abroad where she enjoyed eating food from different countries and learning about different cultures. a week after she returned home, she checked into the hospital with signs of nausea, fever, and diarrhea. what best explains what happened to arianne?
a parasitic bacteria contaminated her food.
a mutualistic bacteria infected her digestive system.
a commensalistic organism is now living in her intestine.
a predational organism is consuming her natural bacteria.

Explanation:

To determine what happened to Arianne, we analyze the options:

• Option 1: Parasitic bacteria live at the host’s expense, causing harm. Contaminated food (from travel) with parasitic bacteria could lead to nausea, fever, diarrhea—matching her symptoms.
• Option 2: Mutualistic bacteria benefit both the host and the bacteria; they do not cause infection or illness. Eliminate.
• Option 3: Commensalistic organisms benefit without harming the host, so they would not cause severe symptoms like fever or diarrhea. Eliminate.
• Option 4: Predational organisms consuming natural bacteria would not directly cause the listed symptoms (nausea, fever, diarrhea) as a primary effect. Eliminate.

Answer:

A. A parasitic bacteria contaminated her food.