VBS 2032 Exam 1
What does the term "ubiquity" mean?
Found everywhere on the planet
What are some surprising places microbes are found?
Found in hot springs and nutrient poor environments beneath glaciers
How can microbes travel
Air, skin to skin
We do not yet know the extent of microbial diversity. Why not?
S#ll developing new techniques for sequencing the DNA and RNA from environmental samples
What are three ways in which microbial ac#vity is essen#al for life on this planet?
Nitrogen fixa#on, recycling, and O2 produc#on
Where are several places microbial biofilms can be found in daily life?
On teeth, on toilet bowls, in kitchen drains
What are two ways microbes have changed that impact healthcare?
Microbes have become an#bio#c and disinfectant resistant, they can help boost your immune
system
Most microbes are not harmful. What are some reasons for this?
They would have to be able to avoid our immune system, grow at body temperature, and
extract nutrients from #ssues. This is difficult to do.
Your friend recently ate a salad containing a brand of spinach that was recalled for
contamina#on with E. coli. Can you explain to her the factors that will influence whether or not
she becomes ill?
Number of microbes- how many she consumed
Virulence of microbe- how well the microbes can evade her immune system
Host immunity- is she immune of immunocompromised?
What are some ways that the Chain of Infec#on can be broken?
Isolate and treat pa#ent, wash hands and disinfect surfaces, vaccinate
,Describe three ways our changing rela#onship with wildlife affects the emergence of new
infec#ous diseases.
Habitat destruc#on, the dilu#on effect, and the wildlife trade
What can we do to avoid the next pandemic?
Find out what viruses there are in wildlife and work with the communi#es that are on the front
line
An increase in the ___________will decrease the likelihood of infec#on.
Host immunity
Nitrogen fixa#on is an essen#al process carried out by:
Algae and bacteria
What two scien#sts are credited with discovering microorganisms?
Robert Hooke and Antoni van Leewenhoek
Is a virus considered a microorganism? Why or why not?
No because they are acellular and are not alive
What are some basic differences between prokaryo#c and eukaryo#c cells?
Eukaryotes have a nucleus and membrane bound organelles whereas a prokaryote does not
What are the rela#ve sizes of a human cell, a protein, a virus and most bacteria?
Human cell: 10-100 microm, protein: 10 nm, virus: 100 nm, bacteria 1-10 microm
How are microorganisms named?
Genus (name or shape) first then species
Why did some scien#sts have difficulty achieving the same result as Pasteur with the swan-
necked flask?
Since Pasteur used a yeast extract and sugar broth there were no heat resistant microbes in his
broth
What two scien#sts helped explain the conflic#ng data?
Tyndall and Cohn
, Can you explain how the swan-necked flask experiment helped disprove the idea of
spontaneous genera#on?
When the broth was boiled the microbes got trapped in the curve of the neck, the broth did not
become cloudy un#l the flask was #pped and the microbes were reintroduced to the broth
How could the potato salad have been prepared safely? (Why did people become ill?).
If the potato salad was used with canned potatoes using the pressure cooker method the high
temperature would have killed the endospores.
Why was there only one fatality?
There are many factors that contribute to whether or not someone will die from an illness
The scien#fic name of an organism includes its
Genus and species
The idea of spontaneous genera#on postulated that:
living organisms could spontaneously arise from non-living material
What is a virulence factor?
Traits of a microbe that promote pathogenicity
What parts of the cell can act as virulence factors?
(different agents used by the pathogen to sneak a disease into our system)
· Flagella: composed of the protein flagellin, func#on in mo#lity
· Pili (Fimbriae): DNA exchange, adherence, mo#lity
· Glycocalyx: slime layers and capsules used for a@achment, protec#on from desicca#on, host
evasion
· Endospores: resistant to heat, UV, desicca#on, toxic chemicals thus, hard to kill, standard
disinfectant cannot kill (C. diff)
· Biofilms
What is a ribosome composed of? What is the func#on of a ribosome?
· small and large subunits composed of rRNA and proteins
· synthesizes protein
What are the basic components of a cell membrane? What are some func#ons that membrane
proteins serve?
What does the term "ubiquity" mean?
Found everywhere on the planet
What are some surprising places microbes are found?
Found in hot springs and nutrient poor environments beneath glaciers
How can microbes travel
Air, skin to skin
We do not yet know the extent of microbial diversity. Why not?
S#ll developing new techniques for sequencing the DNA and RNA from environmental samples
What are three ways in which microbial ac#vity is essen#al for life on this planet?
Nitrogen fixa#on, recycling, and O2 produc#on
Where are several places microbial biofilms can be found in daily life?
On teeth, on toilet bowls, in kitchen drains
What are two ways microbes have changed that impact healthcare?
Microbes have become an#bio#c and disinfectant resistant, they can help boost your immune
system
Most microbes are not harmful. What are some reasons for this?
They would have to be able to avoid our immune system, grow at body temperature, and
extract nutrients from #ssues. This is difficult to do.
Your friend recently ate a salad containing a brand of spinach that was recalled for
contamina#on with E. coli. Can you explain to her the factors that will influence whether or not
she becomes ill?
Number of microbes- how many she consumed
Virulence of microbe- how well the microbes can evade her immune system
Host immunity- is she immune of immunocompromised?
What are some ways that the Chain of Infec#on can be broken?
Isolate and treat pa#ent, wash hands and disinfect surfaces, vaccinate
,Describe three ways our changing rela#onship with wildlife affects the emergence of new
infec#ous diseases.
Habitat destruc#on, the dilu#on effect, and the wildlife trade
What can we do to avoid the next pandemic?
Find out what viruses there are in wildlife and work with the communi#es that are on the front
line
An increase in the ___________will decrease the likelihood of infec#on.
Host immunity
Nitrogen fixa#on is an essen#al process carried out by:
Algae and bacteria
What two scien#sts are credited with discovering microorganisms?
Robert Hooke and Antoni van Leewenhoek
Is a virus considered a microorganism? Why or why not?
No because they are acellular and are not alive
What are some basic differences between prokaryo#c and eukaryo#c cells?
Eukaryotes have a nucleus and membrane bound organelles whereas a prokaryote does not
What are the rela#ve sizes of a human cell, a protein, a virus and most bacteria?
Human cell: 10-100 microm, protein: 10 nm, virus: 100 nm, bacteria 1-10 microm
How are microorganisms named?
Genus (name or shape) first then species
Why did some scien#sts have difficulty achieving the same result as Pasteur with the swan-
necked flask?
Since Pasteur used a yeast extract and sugar broth there were no heat resistant microbes in his
broth
What two scien#sts helped explain the conflic#ng data?
Tyndall and Cohn
, Can you explain how the swan-necked flask experiment helped disprove the idea of
spontaneous genera#on?
When the broth was boiled the microbes got trapped in the curve of the neck, the broth did not
become cloudy un#l the flask was #pped and the microbes were reintroduced to the broth
How could the potato salad have been prepared safely? (Why did people become ill?).
If the potato salad was used with canned potatoes using the pressure cooker method the high
temperature would have killed the endospores.
Why was there only one fatality?
There are many factors that contribute to whether or not someone will die from an illness
The scien#fic name of an organism includes its
Genus and species
The idea of spontaneous genera#on postulated that:
living organisms could spontaneously arise from non-living material
What is a virulence factor?
Traits of a microbe that promote pathogenicity
What parts of the cell can act as virulence factors?
(different agents used by the pathogen to sneak a disease into our system)
· Flagella: composed of the protein flagellin, func#on in mo#lity
· Pili (Fimbriae): DNA exchange, adherence, mo#lity
· Glycocalyx: slime layers and capsules used for a@achment, protec#on from desicca#on, host
evasion
· Endospores: resistant to heat, UV, desicca#on, toxic chemicals thus, hard to kill, standard
disinfectant cannot kill (C. diff)
· Biofilms
What is a ribosome composed of? What is the func#on of a ribosome?
· small and large subunits composed of rRNA and proteins
· synthesizes protein
What are the basic components of a cell membrane? What are some func#ons that membrane
proteins serve?
