Glossary Flashcards by JOSHUA DANIEL PELAYO

hyphae that grow above or outward from the surface of an agar medium or substrate; the visible colony

Aerial Hyphae

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a gelatinous substance used as a culture medium to grow microorganisms

Agar

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a polysaccharide from seaweed extract (Genera Gelidium and Gracilaria) that costs of alternating B-D-galactose and 3, 6-anhydro-L-galactose units of agarobiose. It is used popularly medium for electrophoresis to separate DNA fragments. In general, the higher its concentration the smaller the pore size. Concentration ranges from 0.5% -2%.

Agarose

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asexual (imperfect) state or form of a fungus.

Anamorph

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this a step in PCR when the temperature is lowered to allow DNA primers to attach to a given DNA template. Temperature ranges from 50-56°C.

Annealing

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a fungus that preferentially grows on human rather than animals or the soil. A dermatophyte where human/people is the primary reservoir

Anthropophilic

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a conidium released by fragmentation or by separation that occurs at the septum of cells of hypha.

Arthroconidium
(pl. arthroconidia)

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fruiting body within which asci form

Ascocarp

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saclike cells where ascospores develop

Ascus
(pl. Asci)

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hypha without crosswalls

Aseptate

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antimicrobial that can kill a microorganism

Bactericidal

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a virus that infects bacterial cells

Bacteriophage

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an arrangement observed in Aspergillus spp. where a secondary phialide develops from a primary phialide, forming two series of phialides.

Biseriate

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conidia formed by budding process along a hypha, pseuodhypha, or in a single cell, as seen in yeasts.

Blastoconidia

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a nutrient-rich medium used to isolate fastidious fungi

Brain Heart Infusion

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is a concentration of an antimicrobial that defines if the particular microbial species is susceptible or resistant to the antimicrobial. It is commonly expressed in μg/mL

Breakpoint

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a liquid medium containing nutrients used to grow microorganisms

Broth

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a type of asexual reproduction commonly found in yeasts. An oval shaped “push out” or outgrowth from a parent cell.

Bud

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colorless dye that binds to chitin and cellulose of fungi that fluoresce when exposed to ultraviolet light

Calcofluor White

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proteinaceous coat that protects the viral genome

Capsid

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a hyaline mucopolysaccharide covering the cell body of certain yeasts (e.g.Cryptococcus, Rhodotorula) and some spores and conidia

Capsule

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also known as chlamydospores, these are enlarged, thick-walled round conidia. These conidia can be present at the end of the hypha (terminal), on the sides (sessile) or in between the hypha (intercalary)

Chlamydoconidia

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swollen, thick-walled resistant spore that do not reproduce

Chlamydospore

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club-shaped

Clavate

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hyphal structures without septa

Coenocytic

a remnant of a cell wall present at the tip of a phialide, or around a sporangiophores

Collarette

growth of an organism in a host without causing infection or tissue invasion

Colonization

the distinct characteristics of a microbial colony that are visibly observed on the surface of a nutrient medium

Colony Morphology

a sterile dome-like structure at the tip of a sporangiophore or within a sporangium

Columella (pl. columellae)

a serologic procedure used to determine complement fixing antibody to fungal antigens

Complement Fixation

pertains to a type of growth on the agar surface wherein it is continuous, uniform, and the colonies are not discrete or separated; there should be no individual colonies growing on the surface

Confluent

the cell that gives rise to a conidium

Conidiogenous Cell

a reproductive propagule produced in the absence of nuclear recombination, thus representing anamorphic or asexual reproduction

Conidium

a specialized hypha that gives rise to or bears a conidium

Conidiophore

a method of propagating microorganisms by supporting their growth using culture media and controlled environmental conditions

Cultivation

distinct visible visual changes in the infected cells caused by a viral toxin or infection

Cytopathic Effect

an infection of cutaneous tissue (hair, skin and nails) caused by the keratinophilic fungi other than those of the dermatophytes

Dermatomycosis

a fungi that invades the keratinized part of hair, nail, and skin.

Dermatophyte

a fungus having brown or black melanotic pigment in the cell wall

Dematiaceous

this initial stage in PCR allows separation of the double-stranded DNA into two single strands by breaking the hydrogen bonds that exists between the nucleotide base pairs (bp). Temperature ranges from 94-95°C.

denaturation

fungi having two morphologic forms under different growth conditions

dimorphic

elimination or reduction of microorganisms that may cause disease

Disinfection

also known as molecular-weight size markers, this is a set of predetermined DNA fragment sizes from where unknown bands are compared to identify the approximate size and concentration of a DNA fragment after running gel electrophoresis.

DNA Ladder

they represent the essential building blocks of nucleic acid molecules that are necessary components of PCR mixes during amplification, Four known types of are recognized, each with a unique DNA base: adenine (dATP), cytosine (dCTP), guanine (dGTP), and thymine (dTTP).

Deoxynucleotide triphosphates (dNTPs)

a disease which occurs in a limited geographic area.

Endemic

chemically 3,8-Diamino-5-ethyl-6-phenylphenanthridinium, is a non- radioactive but carcinogenic DNA stain. Distinct red-orange fluorescence under UV light suggests the presence of ds-DNA.

Ethidium Bromide (EtBr)

agent causing the infection or disease

Etiologic Agent

this is a step in PCR when the temperature is increased and the new DNA strand is formed through the action of Taq polymerase. Temperature is usually set at 72°C.

Extension

a property wherein a particle is able to pass through a membrane filter that will prevent the transmission of bacteria

Filterable

synonymous with cottony or wooly. Type of texture formed by large quantities of aerial hyphae usually arranged in a tangled manner

Floccose

aka 5 primers, these are PCR primers that are complementary to the anti-sense strand of ds-DNA and therefore responsible for its amplification. It occurs at the 5' end of the PCR product. Primarily, it anneals to the antisense strand or negative strand of the double-stranded DNA, which runs from 3 to 5 direction. Antisense strand or the coding strand serves as the template strand for the synthesis of mRNA.

Forward Primer

is the presence of fungi in the blood. The most common agent is Candida albicans

Fungemia

capable of inhibiting the growth of fungi

Fungicidal

refers to the range of different inherited traits within a species

Genetic Diversity

Soil-seeking, earth-loving. A dermatophyte having soil as its primary reservoir.

Geophilic

an elongated or tube-like structure that emerges from a spore, with no constriction at the point of origin. Its presence can be used to presumptively identify the presence of Candida albicans.

Germ Tube

biological agents that can potentially cause harm to humans and animals when exposed

Hazards

adherence of red blood cells on a virally infected cell culture

Hemadsoprtion

a mechanical filter that is capable of trapping and removing particles and microorganisms from the air

High Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA)

a member of the human Herpesviridae family that can cause oral and genital infections

Human Simplex Virus (HSV)

microscopic structures are clear or colorless.

Hyaline

A vegetative filament of a fungus.

Hypha (pl. Hypahe)

A serologic test based on precipitation reaction to determine the presence of antibody to fungal antigen by double diffusion technique in gel medium.

Immunodiffusion

refers to a person's complete set of chromosomes

Karyotype

A simple serologic procedure wherein the antibody formed following a fungal disease is detected through the clumping of antigen coated particles.

Latex Agglutination

are commercially available or laboratory prepared solutions used to standardize the approximate amount of bacteria or fungi in a liquid suspension. Standardization is done by either visual or spectrophotometric comparison of the turbidity of the bacterial or fungal suspension to the standard. If the turbidity is the same, the suspension is said to be standardized. A commonly used concentration of the standard in clinical microbiology is the 0.5, wherein its turbid corresponds to approximately 1.5 x 10 cfu/ml

McFarland Standard

this is the lowest concentration of an antimicrobial that inhibits the visible growth of a bacteria or fungi. It is usually expressed in pg/ml

Minimum Inhibitory Concentration

aka. candidiasis, a fungal infection caused by a yeast, Candida albicans

Moniliasis

fungal colonies composed of hyphae

Mold

same definition as hyaline

Moniliaceous

like a wall; multicellular, with both transverse and longitudinal septations

Muriform

colony with hyphae that do not produce conidia or spores

Mycelia Sterilia

the mass of hyphae making up a fungus colony.

Mycelium

pertaining to fungi

Mycotic

a clear zone of lysis due to successive infection of host cells by a virus

Plaque

is defined as the presence of two or more variant forms of a specific DNA sequence that happen among different individuals or populations. SNP or single nucleotide polymorphism is the most common type.

Polymorphism

a general purpose basal medium made from potato infusion and dextrose used to isolate yeasts and molds

Potato Dextrose Agar

set of media inoculated from the specimen

Primary Culture

referring to the surface

Obverse

place where the fungus is found in nature.

Reservoir

the microbe is able to grow in the presence of a particular antimicrobial

Resistant

aka 3' primers, these primers are complementary to the sense or the (+) strand of the ds-DNA and therefore responsible for its amplification. It occurs at the 3' end of the PCR product. Primarily, it anneals to the sense strand or positive strand of the double-stranded DNA, which runs from 5' to 3' direction. The sense strand is complementary to the template strand and therefore, it is known as the anticoding strand.

Reverse Primer

rootlike structures that anchors the fungus to the substrate and also utilized in the absorption of nutrients

Rhizoids

a culture medium primarily used for fungal cultivation and isolation of dermatophytes

Saboraud Dextrose Agar

an organism which requires organic material as a source of energy.

saprobe

the ability to detect all patients with a specific disease.

Sensitivity

having cross walls or partitions

Septate

a reproductive propagule produced internally by "free cell" formation, as in the ascomycete, i.e., complete spores formed all at once around the nuclei available or by "progressive cleavage," as in a sporangium.

Spore

destruction of all life forms, including the bacterial spores

Sterilization

a horizontal hypha from which hyphae, rhizoids or sporangiophore develop

Stolon

material on which the fungus is growing

Substrate

or also known as sensitive. The microbe is unable to grow in the presence of a particular antimicrobial

Susceptible

thermostable DNA polymerase used during PCR amplification. It can withstand high temperature without being denatured. It is extremely heat resistant with a half-life of 40 minutes at 95 °C. It is derived from a heat-tolerant bacterium, Thermus aquaticus.

Taq Polymerase (Taq Pol)

used to preserve the integrity of the specimen from the time of collection up to the laboratory processing

Transport Medium

equipment used to visualize target DNAs and proteins by emitting high levels of ultraviolet rays through the viewing surface

UV Transilluminator

a human herpes virus that can cause the highly contagious chickenpox

Varicella Zoster Virus (VZV)

capable of inactivating or destroy viruses

Virucidal

predominantly a unicellular fungus, usually round or ovoid, that reproduces by budding

Yeast

a culture medium that is useful for yeast identification made from peptone and yeast extract lo base

Yeast Fermentation Broth

a circular area surrounding the antibiotic disk showing no visible growth of the inoculum

Zone of Inhibition