The Legacy of Microbiology Flashcards
Who is the father of microbiology?
Antonie van Leeuwenhoek
What did Pasteur contribute to microbiology?
discovered the method for the attenuation of virulent microorganisms that is the basis of vaccination, the use of heat in reducing and sterilizing liquids, proposed the germ theory of disease although couldn’t prove it, shut down the spontaneous generation theory, and invented pasteurization.
What did Robert Koch contribute to microbiology?
Kochs postulates, proved the germ theory of disease
What is Koch’s first postulate?
the same microbe is present in all cases of disease and is not found in healthy individuals
what is Koch’s second postulate?
the suspected pathogen must be grown in pure culture
what is Koch’s third postulate?
the pathogen must be introduced to a host and cause the same disease
what is kochs fourth postulate?
the pathogen must be re-isolated in pure culture
what two bacteriums did Koch focus on? Why?
bacillus anthracis and mycobacterium tuberculosis. Both played major roles in the death of humans and livestock.
What are three problems with postulate 1?
carrier state, organisms can carry a pathogen without being sick. Organisms can have symptoms after a pathogen has been cleared. There are other factors of disease, bacteria could not be the causative agent.
what are three problems with postulate 2?
not all pathogens can be cultured. It can be hard to replicate specific nutritive requirements of some bacteria. Some bacteria have slow growth rates, it can take weeks to see growth.
what are three problems with postulate 3?
can’t use humans, so you need an animal model system. Not all hosts are affected by certain bacteria. not all hosts reintroduced to a pathogen will get reinfected
What is a suggested 5th postulate?
show that an antibiotic can inhibit/kill a microorganism, then replicate to show the disease doesn’t occur
Who was Ignaz Semmelweis?
the father of modern handwashing
Who was Jospeh Lister?
the surgeon who took influence from Pasteur, sterilized his tools with phenol and noticed lower infection rates in his patients. Introduced this method to his surgical wing.
What were linnaeus’s two classes?
animalia, plantae
