Lecture 1 Flashcards
Causes of infectious disease
Infectious diseases are caused by pathogens, which are microorganisms that can cause disease in humans. Pathogens can include bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites.
How microbes replicate
Microbes replicate in different ways, depending on the type of microbe. Bacteria replicate by binary fission, which is a process where one bacterium divides into two identical daughter cells. Viruses replicate by hijacking the host cell’s machinery and using it to make new copies of the virus. Fungi replicate by producing spores, which are tiny reproductive cells. Parasites replicate by reproducing inside the host organism.
How microbes infect humans
Ingestion: Microbes can be ingested through food or water. For example, Salmonella bacteria can be ingested through contaminated chicken or eggs.
Inhalation: Microbes can be inhaled through the air. For example, Mycobacterium tuberculosis bacteria can be inhaled through the air and cause tuberculosis.
Contact: Microbes can be transmitted through contact with an infected person or animal. For example, the herpes simplex virus can be transmitted through contact with an infected person’s sores.
Vector-borne transmission: Microbes can be transmitted through vectors, which are animals that carry and transmit diseases. For example, the malaria parasite is transmitted by Anopheles mosquitoes
Is all microbial life pathogenic?
No, not all microbial life is pathogenic. In fact, the vast majority of microbes are harmless to humans. In fact, many microbes are beneficial to humans, such as the bacteria that live in our gut and help us to digest food.
Do all pathogenic microbes kill the host cell?
No, not all pathogenic microbes kill the host cell. Some microbes, such as viruses, can replicate inside the host cell without killing it. Other microbes, such as bacteria, can kill the host cell, but this is not always the case.
Infectious Disease around the world
Used to be more regional, but through globalization, these specific regional diseases don’t really exist anymore. Diseases disseminate quickly & do not stick to certain regions. Before globalization, this did exist.
Examples: TB in areas of Africa and North America & West Nile virus in the states
Explain the relationship between public health and infectious disease
Public health efforts help made the spread of disease less common, and decreased the death rate per year. As more money was put into funding certain initiatives like cleaning the water supply and the vaccines, there was a correlation seen with how many deaths were seen each year.
When were antibacterial agents developed?
In the 20th century
When did antivirals start to be developed? (before/after antibacterial agents)
Much later than antibacterial agents
Why did antivirals start to be developed later?
Antivirals are more difficult to develop than antibiotics because viruses are more complex and replicate inside host cells & to develop viruses you would have to kill the infected cells and thus kill human cells
21st century developments
genomic & proteomics
Gene sequencing
Can now sequence an organism’s DNA in hours instead of years & development in this field has increased dramatically
Antibiotic development
Antibiotics invented well up to the 2000, dwindled after
Diseases are becoming antibiotic resistance
There is a big market for antibiotics worldwide, big-pharma doesn’t want to engage since those markets cannot pay (broke)
Antiviral discovery
Overall, is expensive.
AIDS epidemic in 1985 stimulated the development of many antivirals.
Viruses are complex and diverse, and there is no one-size-fits-all approach to antiviral drug development.
Big pharma & their menace behavior?
The pharmaceutical industry is more interested in developing drugs for diseases with a large market potential, such as chronic diseases. Antiviral drugs often have a smaller market potential, as they are typically used to treat acute infections.
Flu shot - needs new variant every year, no real interest form BigPharm to develop/invest
How does MRNA Vaccines play into this antiviral development?
mRNA introduced low cost way of manufacturing vaccines (SARS-COVID)
The development of new technologies, such as mRNA vaccines and gene editing, could revolutionize antiviral drug discovery.
Size of viruses in comparison to bacteria and protozoa
Viruses: 0.03-0.3um
Bacteria: 0.1-10um
Viruses are 100-1000x smaller than bacteria
How does the size of a microorganism affect its biology?
The size of a microorganism can have a big impact on its biology. For example, smaller microorganisms are able to move more quickly and squeeze into smaller spaces. While larger microorganisms are better able to store nutrients and reproduce.
Increasing complexity of microorganisms?
Increasing complexity: viruses → bacteria → fungi → parasites
Parasites
exist as single or multicellular structures with the same cell plan of our own cells including ORGANELLES like a nucleus and cytoplasmic
Fungi
Eukaryotic, but have a rigid external wall that makes them seem more like plants than animals.
Bacteria
Bacteria also have a cell wall, but with a cell plan called “prokaryotic” that lacks ORGANELLES.
NO organelles
Viruses
Viruses are not cells at all.
*** THEY HAVE A DNA GENOME but they MUST take over another cell in order to replicate.
Naked Virus
Is a virus that does not have a lipid envelope. ONLY contains the protein capsid that has the genome
Enveloped Virus
An enveloped virus is a virus that has a lipid envelope surrounding its protein capsid that is derived from the host cell membrane when the virus buds off from the cell
True or False: viruses contain organelles
FALSE: Viruses contain little more than DNA or RNA
Bacteria
Smallest living cells.
Have a cytoplasm surrounded by a cell wall
However, they also do not have any organelles or a nucleus
If bacteria have no nuclei, where does protein necessary to replicate go?
Their cytoplasm contains the ribosomes and a single, double-stranded DNA chromosome.
How do bacteria divide?
Binary fission
Fungi types
Are yeast or mold
Structure of fungi
Fungi are eukaryotic and have a rigid external cell wall & all the organelles.
How is the genome held in fungi?
Diploid or haploid state inside a nucleus
Parasites
Most diverse and can range from unicellular amoebas to multicellular tapeworms
Do parasites have organelles?
Yes. They are eukaryotic organisms that can be highly differentiated
Do parasites always have to depend on another living thing to survive?
No. Most parasites are free living but some can depend on animals for survival.
True or False: Bacteria are the smallest microorganism types & are the least complex
False. Viruses are the least complex since the only contain DNA or RNA
Prokaryotic Cells
VIRUSES & BACTERIA:
No distinguished nucleus
No organelles
Extrachromosomal DNA exists in plasmids
No sterols
Cell walls of peptidoglycan
Eukaryotic Cells
Fungi & parasites:
Has a nucleus
Has organelles
Has organelles for extrachromosomal DNA
Have sterols
& no peptidoglycan although sometimes cellulose can exist
Common routes of transmission
Respiratory, Salivary, Eye, skin, genitally, blood, urine, animals
Direct transmission
Coughing or sneezing on someone
Coming into contact with an infected person’s bodily fluids, such as blood, saliva, or semen
Having sexual contact with an infected person
Touching an infected person’s sores or rash
indirect transmission
Being bitten by an infected mosquito
Eating contaminated food or water
Touching a contaminated surface and then touching your eyes, nose, or mouth
Breathing in contaminated air
Horizontal transmission
From infected individual to another individual of the same generation.
Ex: Digate coughing on us in class while he had COVID. (he didn’t give it to anyone but he could have 🙂)
Vertical Transmission:
From mother to offspring. Ex: postpartum transmission or while in the womb.
EX: HIV from mother to baby
Classes of microbiota
Microbiome (Our flora)
Commensal (residential, symbiotic)
Transient colonization
Opportunistic
Pathogenic
Commensal microorganisms
A commensal is an organism that lives on or in another organism without causing harm or benefit. They are often essential for the health of the host, and their absence can lead to disease.
Presence of commensal microorganisms in the body
More than 1000 species and there are billions of organisms
What are the functions of commensal microorganisms in the body?
Digesting food, essential vitamins and growth factor as well as protection against invasion of pathogens. This is because they are territorial (as learned in immunology)
Do children have a flora?
Yes, they will start to develop one at birth and over time it’s something that is developed over age.
What does the microbiome health depend on?
illness, age, diet and health
What happens to the microbiome when we take antibiotics?
When we take antibiotics, they kill both harmful and beneficial bacteria in our gut. This can disrupt the balance of the microbiome and lead to a variety of health problems, including stomach problems. Doctors can suggest you eat yogurt (filled with probiotics) while you’re on an antibiotic to help combat this
Virulence
The circumstances that allow a microorganism to achieve infections and cause diseases
Gaining access to the body:
Gaining access to the body:
Structures like pili and hairs on the body of the bacteria can help it attach to host cells
Avoiding multiple host defenses:
Capsules, proteases, antigenic variation, etc
Colonization of the host
Nutrient acquisition systems: Bacteria needs nutrients to survive & pumps that remove harmful substances like antibiotics
Parasitizing host resources
examples to help understand it (not in the textbook):
Small molecules that bind iron and make it available to bacteria
Enzymes that lyse red blood cells, releasing iron and other nutrients
Inducing toxicity and damage
Endotoxins/exotoxins that damage host cells