Prokaryotes

Question 1

Antibiotic Drug

Answer 1

Drug that kills bacteria and cures bacterial infections and diseases.

Note: Most aren’t very selective, so they can end up destroying good bacteria as well.

Question 2

Antibiotic Resistance

Answer 2

Ability to withstand antibiotic drugs, which has developed in some bacteria.

Question 3

Archaea

Answer 3

One of two prokaryote domains that includes organisms that live in extreme environments.

Question 4

Bacteria

Answer 4

Domain of prokaryotes, some of which cause human diseases.

Question 5

Biofilm

Answer 5

Colony of prokaryotes that is stuck to a surface such as a rock or a host’s tissue.

Question 6

Cyanobacteria

Answer 6

Gram-positive blue-green photosynthetic bacteria.

Question 7

Endospore

Answer 7

Spores that form inside prokaryotic cells when they are under stress, enclosing the DNA and helping it survive conditions that may kill the cell.

Question 8

Extremophile

Answer 8

Any type of Archaea that lives in an extreme environment such as a very salty, hot, or acidic environment.

Question 9

Flagella

Answer 9

Long, thin protein extensions of the plasma membrane in most prokaryotic cells that help the cells move.

Question 10

Genetic Transfer

Answer 10

Method of increasing genetic variation in prokaryotes that involves “grabbing” stray pieces of DNA from their environment or exchanging DNA with other cells.

Question 11

Gram-negative Bacteria

Answer 11

Type of Bacteria that stains red with Gram stain and have a thin cell wall with an outer membrane.

Question 12

Gram-positive Bacteria

Answer 12

Type of bacteria that stain purple with Gram stain and have a thick cell wall without an outer membrane.

Question 13

Plasmid

Answer 13

Small, circular piece of DNA in a prokaryotic cell.

Question 14

Vector

Answer 14

Organism such as an insect that spreads pathogens from host to host.

Question 15

Prokaryotes

Answer 15

Uni-cellular organism that does not have a nucleus with a membrane or specialized organelles.

Question 16

Gram-positive vs. Gram-negative

Answer 16

Gram-positive bacteria have thick cell walls with an outer membrane (such as cyanobacteria), while gram-negative bacteria have thin cell walls with no outer membrane (such as salmonella).

Question 17

Give three examples of Extremophiles.

Answer 17

Halophiles, which love salty environments, Hyperthermophiles, which love hot environments, and acidophiles, which love acidic environments.

Question 18

What are the three most common shapes of prokaryotes.

Answer 18

Helical, sphere, rod.

Question 19

Describe a typical prokaryote.

Answer 19

Possesses flagella and endospores.