Antibiotic Resistance + HAIs Flashcards

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1
Q

Explain the concept of an “evolutionary race” 5

A
  • Struggle between human immune system and pathogens to outcompete each other
  • As humans evolve better and better immune systems to fight pathogens
  • Pathogens evolve better and better ways to evade immune systems of hosts
  • Strong selection pressures on both sides cause competition
  • Host selection pressure: prevent pathogen infection and pathogen selection pressure: avoid immune system
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2
Q

Give the 2 ways that HIV evades the specific immune response

A
  • Antigenic variability

- Reduced HIV detection and recognition

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3
Q

Explain antigenic variability and this creates problems for the immune system 6

A
  • Mutation in DNA of HIV’s antigen gene
  • Changes tertiary structure of HIV antigen
  • Causes antigenic variability - new strains of the virus formed
  • Memory T cells no longer recognise new antigen
  • No secondary immune response
  • Immune system must produce primary immune response for each new strain - slow
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4
Q

Explain how reduced HIV detection and recognition occurs 2

A
  • HIV kills T helper cells

- Disrupts antigen presentation in infected cells

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5
Q

How does TB evade the immune system? 5

A
  • Phagocytes unable to destroy myobacterium tuberculosis
  • Produce substances preventing lyosome fusing with phagocytic vacuole
  • Bacteria not destroyed and multiply inside
  • Antigen presentation doesn’t occur
  • T cells not activated
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6
Q

What is a “Hospital Acquired Infection”?

A

Infections caught while the patient is treated in hospital

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7
Q

How are HAIs transmitted? 3

A
  • Not hand washing [staff/visitors]
  • Coughs and sneezes
  • Equipment e.g beds and surfaces not properly disinfected
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8
Q

Why are HAIs more likely in hospitals?

A

Many patients ill with immunosuppression around other ill people

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9
Q

How can hospital acquired infections be prevented? 4

A
  • Hospital staff and visitors encouraged to wash hands
  • Equipment and surfaces disinfected
  • People with HAIs moved to isolation ward - less likely to transmit infection to other patients
  • Clothing cleaned in high temperature laundry
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10
Q

How can antibiotic resistance occur with natural selection? 2

A
  • Antibiotics create a strong selection pressure

- Only organisms with a resistant allele survive and reproduce

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11
Q

Why is antibiotic resistance more common in hospitals?

A

More antibiotics are used there so bacteria more likely to develop resistance

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12
Q

What can cause antibiotic resistance?(4)

A
  • Overuse of antibiotics [for preventing infections/for minor infections]
  • Not using narrow spectrum antibiotics [ones targeting specific bacterium]
  • Not finishing full course of antibiotics so infection not fully cleared
  • Not rotating use of different antibiotics
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13
Q

What are the two ways antibiotic resistance occurs in bacteria?

A
  • Natural selection

- Horizontal gene transmittion

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14
Q

Explain horizontal gene transmission 3

A
  • Gene for resistance is passed from one bacterium to the other
  • Of a same/different species
  • In cell to cell contact [conjugation]
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