INFECTIOUS AGENTS - Fungi

Question 1

Are fungi prokaryotic or eukaryotic cells?

Answer 1

Eukaryotic

Question 2

List the components that make up fungal cell walls?

Answer 2

A thick cell wall made up of chitin, mannans and glucans

Question 3

What is the sterol present in fungal plasma membranes?

Answer 3

Ergosterol

Question 4

What is the infective form of fungi?

Answer 4

Fungal spores (more specifically arthrospores)

Question 5

(T/F) Fungi can be saphrocytic or parasitic

Answer 5

TRUE

Question 6

List the three main categories of fungi

Answer 6

• Yeast
• Filamentous
• Dimorphic

Question 7

Are yeast uni- or multicellular?

Answer 7

Unicellular

Question 8

How does yeast replicate?

Answer 8

Yeasts replicate through budding

Question 9

What is the term used to describe the structure formed when yeast daughter cells (buds) don’t detach from the original yeast?

Answer 9

Pseudohyphae

Question 10

Are filamentous fungi uni- or multicellular?

Answer 10

Multicellular

Question 11

What is the name of the primary structure of filamentous fungi?

Answer 11

Hyphae

Question 12

What is the name of the branched structure of filamentous fungi?

Answer 12

Mycelium (mould)

Question 13

What are the two types of mycelium?

Answer 13

Septate mycelium
Non-septate mycelium

Question 14

Dimorphic fungi exhibit thermal dimorphism. What does this mean?

Answer 14

Dimorphic fungi exhibit different forms depending on the surrounding temperature. At environmental temperature, dimorphic fungi presents as mycelium (mould) however when dimorphic fungi reach 37°C (i.e. is ingested by an animal), dimorphic fungi exhibits as yeast (which is it’s pathogenic form)

Question 15

What are the three different forms of polymorphic fungi?

Answer 15

Yeast, hyphae and pseudohyphae

Question 16

What is the pathogenic form of polymorphic fungi?

Answer 16

Hyphae

Question 17

Give an example of polymorphic fungi

Answer 17

Candida albicans