Grand Challenges Flashcards
Define: Avirulent
not protect from the immune system (rough bacteria)
Define: Communicable disease
an infectious disease which is spread from one person to another
Define: Flora
the life found naturally present in a particular area, typically relating to plants or microbes
Define: Infectious disease
disease caused by pathogenic microorganisms
Define: Latent infection
viral DNA exists in the host but doesn’t replicate
Define: Lytic infection
virus replicates, destroys host cell, and releases virus
Define: Microbiome
the full complement of microbes, their genes, and genomes in a particular environment
Define: Microbiota
the microorganisms that live in an established environment
Define: Periplasm
space between membranes; found in gram negative cells
Define: Persistent infection
virus replicates and is released from host cell by budding out, the host cell is not destroyed
Define: Transformation infection
the virus converts the host cell into a tumour cell
Define: Virion
extracellular form which allows virus to travel between host cells, protects the genome, and proteins aid attachment to host cell
i.e. the physical virus particle
Define: Vaccination
deliberate exposure to a preparation from an infectious agent to induce immunity
Define: Virulent
protected from the immune system (smooth bacteria); extremely severe or harmful in its effects
Define: Virus
an infectious nucleic acid (RNA or DNA) surrounded by a protein; obligate intracellular parasite
Define: Zoonotic disease
infectious diseases of animals that can cause disease when transmitted to humans
Name 4 transmission routes for infectious diseases
airborne, food/water, soil, direct contact, arthropods, animals
Name the differences between Gram negative and Gram positive bacteria
Gram positive: several layers of peptidoglycan
Gram negative: thin layer of peptidoglycan
outer membrane made of lipopolysaccharide
space between the outer and inner
periplasm
How can fungi benefit humans?
Antibiotics, fermentation e.g. yeast
What is the transmission route for pneumonia?
Direct contact and air
Where do most antibiotics come from?
Natural products: streptomyces, fungi, other bacteria
How do antibiotics work?
antibiotics work by inhibiting essential machinery to bacteria:
- protein synthesis
- disrupting the cell envelope
- nucleic acid biosynthesis
- folic acid biosynthesis
How does resistance work?
natural mutation or horizontal gene transfer
What benefits do humans gain from normal flora? (5)
synthesise and excrete vitamins
prevent colonisation by pathogens
may antagonise other bacteria
stimulates the development of certain tissues
stimulates the production of cross-reactive antibodies
