Biomed Quest

Epidemiologist

A scientist who studies how diseases spread, who they effect, and how to stop them

Endemic

A disease that stays at a constant, steady level in one area

Outbreak

A sudden increase in cases of a disease in a small area or group

Pandemic

A disease outbreak that spreads across many countries or continents and affects a large number of people

Nosocomical infection

An infection you get inside a hospital that you didn’t have when you arrived

Infection

The establishment of disease causing organisms within a host

Host

The organism that a germ lives on

Disease

A condition where the body is not functioning normally because of infections, genetics, or other causes

Pathogen

A germ that can cause disease

Prion

A misfolded protein that makes other proteins misfold leading to deadly brain disease

Cause of prion disease

Spontaneously, eating infected tissue typically from cows, or inherited

Virus

a tiny non-living infectious particle that needs a living host cell to reproduce

Bacteria

Single-celled living organisms that can be harmless, helpful, or cause disease

Antibiotics

Cure for bacteria

Protists

Single-celled eukaryotes that can be harmless or cause disease

Fungi

Organisms; mold, yeast, and mushrooms; some are harmless, beneficial, and some cause infection

Helminths

Parasitic worms that live in the body and can cause disease

Normal flora

The helpful bacteria that naturally live on and inside your body and protect you

Direct contact

When a disease spreads through phyiscal touch between people

Indirect contact

When a disease spreads by touching contaminated objects or surfaces

Infectious dose

The minimum number of microorganisms needed to enter the body and cause an infection

Innate immunity

Your bodies first line of defense; fast automatic protections your born with

Examples of innate immunity

Skin, mucus, cilia, stomach acid, tears, saliva, inflammation, fever, phagocytes

Acquired immunity

Immunity you gain overtime after your body has been exposed to a pathogen; your immune system learning and remembering how to fight something

Active immunity

When your immune system makes antibodies to protect you; by getting sick or getting a vaccine

Passive immunity

When you get antibodies from another person or source; from your mom as a baby, from antibody injections

Antigen

Any substance that triggers your immune system to respond

T-cells

Immune cells that find and destroy infected or abnormal cells

Thymus

Where are T-cells found?

B-cells

Immune cells that make antibodies to fight pathogens

Bone marrow

Where are B-cells found?

Antibodies

Proteins made by B-cells that recgonize and stick to specific antigens to help destroy pathogens

Immunity

Your bodies ability to fight off infections and keep you from getting sick

Vaccine

A shot that trains your immune system to fight real pathogens

Etiology

The cause of a disease

Morphology

The shape of a cell

Metabolize

To break down or use substances for energy

Culture

Growing microorganisms in a controlled enviornment

Microbiologist

A scientist who studies microorganisms like bacteria, viruses, and fungi

Petri dish

A shallow plastic or glass dish used to grow bacteria or other tiny organisms

Agar

A jelly-like substance that provides food and a surface for bacteria to grow on

Clusters

a visible cluster of millions of bacteria that all grew from one single bacterium

Binary fission

A form of aseuxal reproduction where one bacterial cell splits into two identical cells

Aseptic technique

A set of practices used to prevent contamination by unwanted microbes

• Protect your samples from getting contaminated

• Protects you from the microbes

Isolation streak

A lab method where you drag bacteria across agar in a pattern to separate them so single colonies can grow

Gross morphology

The visible appearance of a colony or organism

purple

Positive gram stain

pink

Negative gram stain

Coccus

Round cells

Bacillus

Rod-shaped cels

Spirillum

Spiral shaped cells

Purple

What gram stain has a thick peptidogylcan cell wall?