CMB1003/L01 Intro to Bacteria

Question 1

Give 3 ways in which bacteria are important.

Answer 1

Remove carbon
Aid digestion
Recycle waste
Food and chemical production

Question 2

What is a hyperthermophile?

Answer 2

An organism that lives in high temperatures (90-122C)

Question 3

What is a psychrophile?

Answer 3

An organism that lives in low temperatures (-12-10C)

Question 4

Wha is an acidophile/alkaliphile?

Answer 4

An organism that lives in low/high pH environments

Question 5

What is a barophile?

Answer 5

An organism that lives in harsh pressure environments (500->1000atm)

Question 6

What is a halophile?

Answer 6

An organism that lives in high salt concentrations (15%-32%)

Question 7

What is chemosynthesis?

Answer 7

Not using sunlight for energy

Question 8

Give 3 examples of how bacteria is used in biotechnology.

Answer 8

Recombinant proteins
Biologic drugs
Natural product drugs
Fine chemicals
Industrial enzymes
Synthetic biology

Question 9

What did Robert Koch discover bacteria was the causative agent of? (3)

Answer 9

Anthrax
Cholera
Tuberculosis

Question 10

What does the term microbiome refer to?

Answer 10

Genes harboured by microbiota

Question 11

What are microbiota?

Answer 11

Microbial organisms living on/around/in us that are not part of our own body

Question 12

Give 4 roles of the human microbiome.

Answer 12

Protection against pathogens
Synthesis of vitamins
Immune system development
Promotion of intestinal angiogenesis
Promotion of fat storage
SCFA production by fermentation of dietary fibre]Modulation of CNS

Question 13

How do milk oligosaccharides modulate gut microbiome? (4)

Answer 13

B. infantis ferments milk sugars the baby cannot digest
Lower gut pH
Enhanced epithelial barrier
Immune modulation

Question 14

How are bacteria used to investigate disease? (3)

Answer 14

Research genetic mutations
Treat infections
Research novel antibiotics
Bacteria defence mechanism used to edit human genes
Host-pathogen interaction