Infections pt.1 Flashcards
What are these terms:
- Communicability
- Infectivity
Communicability: Ability to infect person to person
Infectivity: Ability to multiply in person
What are these terms:
- Virulence
- Pathogenicity
Virulence: Capacity to cause severe disease
Pathogenecity: Ability to produce disease (dependent on communicability and infectivity)
What are these terms:
Toxigenicity
Toxigenicity: Ability to produce toxins
What are the differences in bacteremia and septicemia?
Bacteremia: Presence of bacteria in blood
Septicemia: Growth of bacteria in blood
What can septicemia lead to?
Septic (endotoxic shock)
Gram negative bact. release endotoxins:
Widespread vasodilation that leads to lots of plasma in tissues
What do exotoxins do?
Enzymes that :
- damage plasma membrane of host cell
- Inactivate protein synthesis enzymes
What do endotoxins cause?
Activate the inflammatory response and cause fever (progens)
How do latent virsuses work?
Hide in host cell
- Activate by stress, hormones, and disease
Why can the flu cause repeat infections?
Undergoes antigenic variation:
Antigens undergo yearly changes
Diseases caused by fungus are called:
Where do they infect?
Mycoses
Can be superficial, deep, or opportunistic
Pathogenic fungus that grow on skin, hair or nails:
The diseases are named:
Dermatophytes
Named tineas (ringworms)
Why are fungal infections so hard to defeat?
Adapt to host environment:
- Temperature variations, require low oxygen
- Suppress the immune system
The most common cause of fungal infections:
Where are they typically found:
Opportunistic fungi: Candida albicans
found in normal microbiome
What types of infections can Candida cause?
- Localized
- Disseminated (systemic) if immunocompromised
One species benefits at the expense of the other:
Symbiotic parasite
