challenges for microorganism L2

Question 1

Give three examples of how microorganisms can be transmitted to new hosts.

Answer 1

Physical contact
*
Ingestion
*
Inhalation
*
Via vectors

Question 2

Explain the term ‘zoonotic infection

Answer 2

Zoonotic infections are infections that spread from animals to humans and vice versa

Question 3

Name two key characteristics of bats’ immune systems that help them tolerate viral infections.

Answer 3

Bats have constitutive interferon activity that suppresses viral infections (innate immunity).
*
Bats also have unusually large naïve antibody repertoires which don’t require rapid affinity maturation for limiting viral replication (adaptive immunity)

Question 4

What was the primary method used to contain the SARS CoV-1 outbreak (2002-04)

Answer 4

Public health measures such as testing/diagnosis/quarantine

Question 5

What is a key reason why we cannot eradicate all human infectious diseases like smallpox?

Answer 5

Many pathogens have animal reservoirs, unlike the variola virus that only infects humans

Question 6

Describe the ChAdOx1 nCoV19 vaccine (AZD1222) used against COVID-19.

Answer 6

It is a chimpanzee adenovirus vectored vaccine genetically engineered to express the spike protein of SARS CoV-2

Question 7

Morbidity

Answer 7

→ Refers to illness or disease. It indicates how often a disease occurs in a population.

Question 8

Mortality

Answer 8

→ Refers to death. It is the number of deaths in a population due to a specific cause.

Question 9

what impacts infectious diseases?

Answer 9

co infections
health care resources
wider impacts like socio-eco

Question 10

what makes a microogranism harmful?

Answer 10

virulence factors - microbe specific
inflammation - host specific

Question 11

intra host - site specific

Answer 11

Immune system might ignore microorganisms at one anatomical site but react to them at another - commensals are ignored in gut but stimulate strong inflammatory immune response if spread to other anatomical locations like the gut wall

Question 12

inter host - host specific

Answer 12

• microorganism that cross species barriers may not produce disease in one host but can in another

Question 13

When pathogens cross species, the outcome is described

Answer 13

as unpredictable as different hosts have different immune systems

Question 14

CFR

Answer 14

case fatality rate
- estimates for infection rates

Question 15

COVID-19 (caused by SARS-CoV-2):

Answer 15

• Control Measures:
  ○ Widespread vaccination campaigns
  ○ Social distancing and mask-wearing
  ○ Quarantine and isolation for infected individuals
  ○ Contact tracing and testing
  Public health communication to educate the public

Question 16

Malaria (caused by Plasmodium species):

Answer 16

• Control Measures:
  ○ Distribution of insecticide-treated bed nets
  ○ Indoor residual spraying with insecticides
  ○ Antimalarial drugs for treatment and prevention
  ○ Vector control through eliminating mosquito breeding sites
  Public education on prevention methods

Question 17

• Influenza (caused by Influenza virus):

Answer 17

• Control Measures:
  ○ Annual flu vaccinations for at-risk populations
  ○ Antiviral treatments for early-stage infections
  ○ Public health campaigns to promote hygiene (e.g., hand washing, covering coughs)
  ○ Quarantine and isolation of infected individuals during outbreaks
  Monitoring and surveillance of flu strains to anticipate and prepare for seasonal changes