Microbiology Flashcards
Define asymptomatic carriage
When a pathogen is carried harmlessly at a tissue site where it causes no disease
What is unusual about chlamydia compared to other bacteria?
It can only grow inside a host cell
Put the following in average size order:
bacteria, protozoa, virus
from largest to smallest:
Protozoa
Bacteria
Virus
When do bacteria produce spores?
When they run out of nutrients
A spore will only germinate once conditions are suitable again
Define heat labile
Can be unfolded through heating
What is special about obligate intracellular bacteria
They may not be cultured on artifical media
What is a molliculite?
Bacteria that we can grow on artifical media WITHOUT cell walls
5 stages of viral replication
- Attachment to a specific receptor
- Cell entry - uncoating of virion within cell
- Host cell interaction + replication - transcription & translation
- Assembly of virion
- Release of new virus particles
Define protazoa
A single celled eukaryotes (have a nucleus)
Name of the adult form a protazoa
Trophozoite
5 major groups of trophozoites
Flagellate
Amoebae
Microsporidia
Sporozoa
Ciliates
Biological role of protazoa
Consumers of bacteria, algae, microfungi
4 spcies of malaria that cause disease?
Plasmodia falciparum
Plasmodia ovale
Plasmodia vivax
Plasmodia malariae
Give the 8 stages of the lifecycle of malaria
- Mosquito bites somebody with malaria → ingests gametocytes
- Gametocytes mature in the mosquitos gut, invade blood stream & move to salivary glands
- Mosquito bites somebody else & transfers sporozoites to this person
- Sporozoites infect hepatocytes
- Develops into a schizont which bursts & infects RBCs
- Within the RBC, plasmodium becomes a trophozoite
- The trophozoite develops into a schizont which ruptures and re-infects another RBC
- Some trophozoites develop into gametocytes which are taken up by mosquitos
- Process repeats
Malaria treatment
Complicated/severe malaria = IV artesunate
Mild = lots of options, treat what is failing
3 key attributes of a pathogen to cause disease
Infectivity
Virulence
Invasiveness
How do beta-lactams work?
- Disrupt peptidoglycan production
- By covalently binding to penicillin binding proteins (PBPs)
- Cell wall is disrupted & lysis occurs
- Hypo-osmotic & iso-osmotic environment
- Active only against rapidly multiplying organisms
4 subclasses of beta-lactams
Penicillins
Cephalosporins
Carbapenems
Monobactams
Do beta-lactams work better in destroying gram negative or gram positive bacteria?
Gram positive
4 majors types of antibiotic
Beta lactams
Inhibiting nucleic acid synthesis
Inhibiting protein synthesis
Inhibiting folate synthesis
What are we trying to achieve when giving antibiotics?
Giving the immune system time and support to deal with an infection
2 main strains of HIV that affect humans
HIV-1
HIV-2 (mainly confined to West Africa)
How many genes does HIV express?
10