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Microbial world > Lecture 1 > Flashcards

Lecture 1 Flashcards

1
Q

What groups do microbes include?

A

Bacteria, fungi, protozoa, microscopic algae, viruses

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2
Q

What are microbes?

A

Minute, living things too small to see with the unaided eye

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3
Q

What do bacteria in human intestines synthesize?

A

Some B vitamins for metabolism

Vitamin K for blood clotting

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4
Q

What are some commercial products synthesized by bacteria?

A

Chemicals such as acetone, organic acids, enzymes, alcohols and drugs

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5
Q

In 1914, Chaim Weizmann, discovered what?

A

The process by which microbes produce acetone and butanol

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6
Q

What was the production of acetone useful for when world war I started?

A

Making cordite (gunpowder)

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7
Q

What are some substances that microbes have been manipulated into producing, despite not normally?

A

Cellulose, digestive aids, drain cleaner, therapeutic substances (insulin)

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8
Q

What does pathogenic mean?

A

Disease-producing

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9
Q

Who created the bionomical system of nomenclature?

A

Carolus Linnaeus, in 1735

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10
Q

What are the two names assigned to an organism?

A

The genus, the specific epithet (species)

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11
Q

Why are bacteria called prokaryotes?

A

Because their genetic material is not enclosed in a nuclear membrane

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12
Q

What two groups are included in prokaryotes?

A

Bacteria, archaea

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13
Q

What are the shapes of bacterial cells?

A
  • Bacillus: rodlike
  • Coccus: spherical/ovoid
  • Spiral: corkscrew or curved
  • Star-shape
  • Square
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14
Q

In what type of formation can individual bacteria be arranged?

A
  • Chains
  • Clusters
  • Other groupings
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15
Q

What is the composition of a bacterial cell wall?

A

Carbohydrate and peptidoglycan (protein complex)

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16
Q

How do bacteria most commonly reproduce?

A

Binary fission

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17
Q

How do archaea differ from bacteria?

A

Where present, their cell walls do not contain peptidoglycan

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18
Q

What are the three main groups of archaea?

A

Methanogens
Extreme halophiles
Extreme thermophiles

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19
Q

What are fungi?

A
  • Eukaryotes

- Single or multicellular

20
Q

What is the cell wall of fungi composed of?

21
Q

What are unicellular fungi called? How are these different to bacteria (other than being eukaryotes)?

A

Yeasts, larger than bacteria

22
Q

What are the most typical fungi called?

23
Q

What are visible masses that mold form called?

A

Mycelia, composed of hyphae

24
Q

How do fungi reproduce?

A

Sexual and asexual reproduction

25
What are protozoa?
Unicellular eukaryotic microbes
26
How do protozoa move?
Psuedopods, flagella, cilia
27
How do amoebas move?
Psuedopod
28
How do protozoa reproduce?
Sexually or asexually
29
What are algae?
Photosynthetic eukaryotes
30
What is the cell wall of algae composed of?
Cellulose
31
What are the two major groups of parasitic worms? What are these collectively called?
Flatworms and roundworms | Collectively called helminths
32
How many years ago did life first appear on Earth?
~3.8 billion years ago
33
For how many years was the atmosphere anoxic?
2 billion years
34
How many years ago did eukaryotic life evolve?
~2 billion years ago
35
What name is given to the process by which microorganisms degrade/detoxify pollutants such as oil or mercury?
Bioremediation
36
Name a bacteria that is fatal to most insects by harmless to humans and plants?
Bacillus thuringiensis
37
Name 2 food additives produced by microorganisms.
Monosodium glutamate, citric acid
38
Bacteria are ______. They are found in all types of ecological niches.
Ubiquitous
39
What are microbial communities?
Dynamic, interacting populations of microbes found in nature
40
What is a microbial habitat?
The environment in which a microbial population lives.
41
What is an ecosystem?
The microbial communities, as well as the physical and chemical constituents in their environment
42
Define microbial ecology.
The study of microbes in their natural environment
43
What are the two things microbes in communities can do?
- Interact with each other | - Interact with the chemical and physical environment
44
What are the two ways microbes in communities can interact with each other?
- Cooperation | - Competition
45
What is an infection that can be caused by biofilms?
Endocarditis- Inflammation of the heart
46
Approximately how many microbes are present in or on the human body?
10^13
47
What are two benefits of the normal microbiota present in or on humans?
- Prevent growth of pathogens | - Produce growth factors such as folic acid and vitamin K

Microbial world (12 decks)

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