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Microbiology > Gram Staining, Lab Terms, and Microorganisms > Flashcards

Gram Staining, Lab Terms, and Microorganisms Flashcards

1
Q

What is the gram + cell wall made up of ?

A

thick layer of peptidoglycan
- associated with teichoic acids

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2
Q

Why is staining the cells important ?

A

ensure we can see all the neccessary cells

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3
Q

Is the cell wall thicker in the Gram + or - ?

A

gram +

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4
Q

What cell retains the crystal violet ?

A

gram +

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5
Q

What cells retains the safranin which turns it pink ?

A

gram -

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6
Q

In the gram staining process what causes the forming of the large molecule ?

A

the application of the iodine (mordant) to the crystal violet
- 2nd step

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7
Q

What is the purpose of the application of crystal violet ?

A

to permeate the bacterial cells

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8
Q

In the gram + why does the molecule formed, because of the crystal violet and iodine , not able to exit the cell ?

A

because the cell wall is so thick
- easy for crystal violet to get in but once joined it can’t get out

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9
Q

What is the gram - cell wall made up of ?

A

thin layer of peptidoglycan
- has a outer membrane with periplasmic spaces

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10
Q

Why is the crystal violet and iodine molecule able to get out of the Gram - cell ?

A

because it has a outer membrane with periplasmic spaces
- can escape when decolorized

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11
Q

What happens if you leave the decolorizer on for too long ?

A

can cause the purple of the gram + to lighten up which we don’t want

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12
Q

What is the primary stain ?

A

crystal violet

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13
Q

What is the mordent ?

A

gram’s iodine

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14
Q

What is the decolorizer ?

A

acetone alcohol

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15
Q

What is the counter stain ?

A

safranin

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16
Q

What is the purpose of applying the acetone alcohol ?

A

causes the stain to escape some bacterial cell wall rendering them unstained/colorless
- turns gram - clear

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17
Q

What is the purpose of the safranin ?

A

adds color to the cells that were decolorized
- colorizes the gram - pink

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18
Q

What is the purpose of the grams iodine ?

A

binds with the stain inside the cell wall making a larger molecule

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19
Q

Is there periplasmic spaces in both gram + and - ?

A
  • present in all gram - which allows things to move out of gram -
  • present in some gram +
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20
Q

What is the effect of penicillin on the cell wall ?

A

inhibits the production of the peptidoglycan layer

21
Q

Is penicillin more effective on gram + or - ?

A

gram +
- except for staphylococci

22
Q

Why is penicillin less effective on gram - ?

A

outer membrane prevents penicillin from reaching the peptidoglycan layer

23
Q

What determines the effectiveness of penicillin on the cell wall ?

A

the composition of the cell wall

24
Q

What are the 3 modes of transmissibility of an infectious disease ?

A
  • contact transmission
  • vehicle transmission
  • vector transmission
25
What is contact transmission ?
- direct: person to person (kissing, touching, sexual, etc) - indirect: one host to another by fomites (inanimate objects)- needles, toothbrushes, drinking glasses, doorknobs, etc - droplet: droplet of mucus that exit mouth/nares during coughing, sneezing or exhaling (cold and flu)
26
What is vehicle transmission ?
spread of pathogens via air, drinking water, and food - also blood and body fluids handled outside the body - airborne, waterborne, blood and body fluids
27
What is vector transmission ?
animals that transmit diseases from one host to another - biological: vectors affecting human are biting arthropods (mosquitos ticks, lice, fleas) - mechanical: vectors passively carry pathogens to new hosts on their feet or other body part (houseflies, cockroaches)
28
What is a epidemic ?
appearance of infectious disease or condition which attacks many people at the same time in same geographical location - flu, food poison
29
What is a pandemic ?
epidemic that occurs simultaneously with on more than one continent - AIDS, COVID
30
What is a endemic ?
a disease peculiar to and recurring continuously in a particular locality or population - Histplasmosis-Ohio Valley
31
What does contagious mean ?
communicable disease that is easily transmitted from a reservoir or person - common cold, legionnaires disease
32
What is epidemiology ?
study of the occurence, distribution, and spread of disease in humans - Bird flu, seasonal flu, tracking SARS
33
What does incidence mean ?
the number of new cases of a disease in a given area or population during a given period of time
34
What does prevalence mean ?
the total number of cases, new and existing in a given area of population during a given period of time
35
How are microorganisms our foe ?
- leading cause of illness and death - costs us billions of dollars in health care costs - causes the rise of infectious diseases
36
What are some reasons for the rise in infectious diseases ?
- travel - lax in vaccinating children because disease is no longer common - use of medication to make life longer - development of drug resistance
37
How are microorganisms our friends ?
- breakdown of food in the gut - produce foods like yogurt, cheese, wine, breads - used to make vitamins, insulin, drugs - decompose waste - recycle nutrients back into Earth - used as food source for other organisms - make chemical products like acetone, glycerin, enzymes, alcohols - agriculture
38
What is a broth ?
liquid medium that contains various nutrients and is used to culture bacteria and other microorganisms in culture
39
What is a Agar ?
gelatinous material derived from algae, specifically used as a culture medium of bacteria and other cells for diagnostic or laboratory experiments purposed - melts are 85 C
40
What does deep mean ?
used for culture where you need a deep inoculation into solid medium (gelatin or agar) that is used especially for the growth of anaerobic bacteria
41
What are slants ?
a culture made on the slanting surface of a solidified medium (agar based) in a test tube that has been tilted to provide a greater area for growth
42
What are plates ?
petri dish that contains a solid growth medium, typically agar plus nutrients used to culture small organisms such as microorganisms
43
What is incubation ?
act of maintaining controlled environmental conditions for the purpose of favoring growth or development of microbial cultures
44
What is a colony ?
visible mass of microorganisms all originating from a single mother cell, therefore a colony constitutes a clone of bacteria all genetically alike
45
What is picking colonies ?
selecting a colony from a plate and transferring it to another media or a slide
46
What is a loop ?
simple tool used mainly by microbiologists to retrieve an inoculum from a culture of microorganisms - used for cultivation of microbes on plates by transferring inoculum for streaking
47
What is a needle ?
used in the field of microbio to transfer and inoculate living microorganisms
48
What is a Bunsen Burner ?
small adjustable gas burner used in labs

Microbiology (18 decks)

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