B5.2

Question 1

What is a micro-organism?

Answer 1

Small living organisms that can cause diseases.

e.g bacteria

Question 2

What is a pathogen?

Answer 2

A disease causing micro-organism

Question 3

Are all bacteria and fungi pathogens?

Answer 3

NO! Not all bacteria and fungi are pathogens

Question 4

Are all viruses pathogens?

Answer 4

YES! All viruses are pathogens.

Question 5

How do pathogens make us feel ill?

Answer 5

Bacteria and viruses can reproduce rapidly in our bodies.And bacteria produces TOXINS that damage tissues and make us feel ill.

Question 6

Where to viruses live and reproduce?

Answer 6

Viruses live and reproduce inside cells, damaging them.

Question 7

Give 3 features of bacteria.

Answer 7

• Bacteria are very small cells.
• They reproduce rapidly in our bodies.
• And they make you ill by damaging cells and producing toxins.

Question 8

Give 4 features about what bacteria looks like.

Answer 8

Bacteria has:

• A cell wall
• A cell membrane
• Chromosomes
• And cytoplasm

Question 9

Give 3 features of viruses.

Answer 9

• Viruses are NOT cells
• They replicate themselves by invading your cells
• The cells burst and release the new viruses making you ill

Question 10

Give 3 features about what viruses looks like.

Answer 10

-Protein coat
-Tail
-Genetic material
(no true nucleus and no cytoplasm)

Question 11

Bacteria’s KEY POINTS

Answer 11

-Are living cells
-Can multiply very rapidly
-Up to 0.01mm long
-Release toxins or poisons that make us feel unwell
Examples include:
Food poisoning
Cholera
Gonorrhoea

Question 12

Viruses KEY POINTS

Answer 12

-Are NOT living cells – they have no nucleus (DNA inside protein coat)
-Are even smaller than bacteria
-Can ONLY reproduce inside our cells
-The virus enters the cells, makes lots of copies and then they burst out of the cell into the bloodstream
Examples include:
Flu (Influenza)
Colds
AIDs
Chicken Pox

Question 13

PATHOGEN ATTACK

-Virus

Answer 13

Viruses do their damage INSIDE of the cell.

They MUST get into the host cell to cause damage.

Question 14

PATHOGEN ATTACK

-Bacteria

Answer 14

Bacteria do their damage OUTSIDE of the cell.

They do not need to get into the cells to cause damage.

Question 15

Disease transmission

Answer 15

Pathogens can be spread to plants or animals and cause infection.
When a pathogen spreads from one organism to another, we call this Transmission.

Question 16

Give 8 ways of transmissions of communicable diseases

Answer 16

• Direct (physical) contact
• Body fluids
• Mother to unborn baby
• Air particles
• Food
• Water
• Vector(insects)
• Shared needles/syringes

Question 17

How can the spread of diseases be prevented?

Answer 17

The spread of diseases can be reduced or prevented by:

• simple hygiene measures
• destroying vectors
• isolation of infected individuals
• vaccination
• condoms