Intergalactic disease among humans

[vierasmarius]

Originally Posted by RyanW

It's very likely that a new ecosystem would not present many dangerous contagions. The classic line is that Spock's mom would have had a better chance of conceiving with a horseshoe crab, and the same likely goes for alien viruses. A transplanted ecosystem would be a much bigger hazard.

Bacteria-like infections might be a different issue, as they may function very well on water and sugars, rather than DNA. Likewise toxic chemicals.

Edit: Of course, such an ecosystem is unlikely to support a human population, as well. If the aliens don't use very similar amino acid structures as humans, they aren't food.

The OP was referencing the Stargate universe, and asking about Human populations that settle on other planets, then go thousands of years before contact with the rest of the species. You're right about completely alien organisms / ecosystems, though.