N111 Exam 2 Comprehensive Vocabulary Review

Vocabulary flashcards covering core concepts in temperature regulation, bacterial pathogens, pharmacology, immunity, inflammation, and pain pathophysiology for N111 Exam 2.

Fever

A regulated rise in body temperature mediated by cytokines acting as pyrogens to raise the hypothalamic set point as part of host defense against infection or inflammation.

Hyperthermia

An abnormally high body temperature caused by excessive heat production or inadequate heat loss without an intentional rise in the hypothalamic set point.

Bacterial Infection

Disease caused when pathogenic bacteria enter a host, multiply, evade or overwhelm defenses, and produce tissue injury or harmful host responses.

Pathogenicity

The overall ability of a microorganism to infect a host and cause disease.

Infectivity

The ability of a microorganism to invade the host and multiply within tissues.

Communicability

The ability of an infectious disease to spread directly or indirectly from one person to another.

Virulence

The degree of harm or severity of disease that a pathogen can produce in a host.

Immunogenicity

The ability of a pathogen or antigen to trigger an immune response in the host.

Microbial Adherence

The attachment of microorganisms to host cells or tissues, helping them resist being washed away by body fluids or mucosal defenses.

Invasion

The process or mechanism by which a pathogen enters host tissue and spreads through body structures.

Portal of Entry

The specific route or pathway through which a microorganism enters the host body (such as inhalation, ingestion, or direct contact).

Gram-Positive Bacteria

Bacteria with a cell envelope characterized by a thick peptidoglycan cell wall and no Gram-negative outer membrane.

Gram-Negative Bacteria

Bacteria with a cell envelope featuring a thin peptidoglycan layer plus an outer membrane containing lipopolysaccharide.

Exotoxins

Toxic proteins produced and actively secreted by living bacteria that target specific host cell functions or tissues.

Endotoxin

A toxic lipopolysaccharide component of the outer membrane of Gram-negative bacteria that is released upon bacterial lysis or growth and triggers severe systemic inflammation.

Endospores

Dormant, highly resistant bacterial survival structures formed to withstand unfavorable environmental conditions, distinct from reproductive structures.

Antimicrobial Resistance

The ability of a microorganism to survive or grow in the presence of an antimicrobial drug that previously inhibited or killed it.

Selective Toxicity

The ability of an antimicrobial drug to injure or destroy a target microorganism without causing significant damage to host cells.

Bactericidal

Refers to antimicrobial agents or drugs that directly kill bacteria.

Bacteriostatic

Refers to antimicrobial agents or drugs that inhibit bacterial growth and replication, relying on host immune defenses to clear the remaining organisms.

Nosocomial Infection

An infection acquired by a patient in a healthcare setting during the course of receiving treatment.

Colonization

The presence and multiplication of microorganisms on host tissues without causing tissue damage or clinical infection.

Superinfection

A new secondary infection or overgrowth of resistant organisms that arises during antibiotic treatment following the disruption of normal protective flora.

Penicillins

A class of bactericidal beta-lactam antibiotics that weaken the bacterial cell wall by inhibiting transpeptidases, leading to osmotic lysis.

MRSA

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus; a strain of S. aureus possessing altered penicillin-binding proteins (PBPs) that render standard beta-lactam antibiotics ineffective.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa

An opportunistic Gram-negative pathogen known for intrinsic and acquired drug resistance, treated with specialized agents like piperacillin/tazobactam or cefepime.

Cephalosporins

A class of beta-lactam bactericidal antibiotics organized into generations that inhibit bacterial cell-wall synthesis with varying activity against Gram-positive and Gram-negative organisms.

Vancomycin

A glycopeptide antibiotic that inhibits bacterial cell-wall synthesis, reserved for serious Gram-positive infections including MRSA.

Aminoglycosides

A class of bactericidal protein-synthesis inhibitors (such as gentamicin) used primarily against aerobic Gram-negative bacilli, monitored via peak and trough levels to prevent nephrotoxicity and ototoxicity.

Tetracyclines

Broad-spectrum bacteriostatic antibiotics that inhibit bacterial protein synthesis by binding to the 30S ribosomal subunit.

Macrolides

Bacteriostatic protein-synthesis inhibitors (such as erythromycin and azithromycin) used as alternatives in penicillin-allergic patients, carrying risks of GI upset and QT prolongation.

Sulfonamides and Trimethoprim

Antibacterial drugs that act synergistically to block sequential steps in bacterial folic-acid synthesis.

Autoimmune Disorders

Conditions where the immune system loses self-tolerance and mistakenly attacks host cells and tissues.

Type I Hypersensitivity

An immediate IgE-mediated allergic reaction characterized by mast-cell degranulation and rapid release of histamine and other inflammatory mediators.

Type II Hypersensitivity

An antibody-mediated reaction in which IgG or IgM antibodies bind directly to antigens on target cell surfaces or matrix, causing cell destruction or tissue damage.

Type III Hypersensitivity

An immune complex-mediated reaction where antigen-antibody complexes deposit in vessel walls or tissues, activating complement and recruitment of inflammatory cells.

Type IV Hypersensitivity

A delayed cell-mediated hypersensitivity reaction driven by sensitized T lymphocytes without direct antibody involvement.

Histamine

An inflammatory vasoactive amine released by mast cells and basophils that causes arteriolar vasodilation and increased venular permeability.

Cyclosporine

A calcineurin inhibitor immunosuppressant that suppresses IL-2 transcription to inhibit T-cell proliferation and prevent organ rejection.

NSAIDs

Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs that inhibit cyclooxygenase (COX) enzymes to decrease prostaglandin synthesis, reducing pain, fever, and inflammation.

Aspirin

A salicylate NSAID that irreversibly inhibits COX, exerting analgesic, antipyretic, anti-inflammatory, and antiplatelet activity.

Acetaminophen

A nonopioid analgesic and antipyretic that acts predominantly in the CNS with minimal peripheral anti-inflammatory effects, carrying hepatotoxicity risks in overdose.

Glucocorticoids

Adrenocortical steroid hormones or synthetic drugs with profound metabolic, anti-inflammatory, and immunosuppressive actions.

Inflammation

A protective vascular and cellular response to tissue injury or infection aimed at containing the threat, recruiting defenses, clearing dead material, and starting repair.

Neutrophils

Early-responding phagocytic leukocytes that migrate to inflamed tissue, engulf bacteria, and form purulent exudate upon death.

Macrophages

Differentiated mononuclear phagocytes that engulf pathogens, clean up cellular debris, and secrete cytokines to orchestrate ongoing inflammation and healing.

Degranulation

The exocytosis and release of preformed inflammatory granules (such as histamine) from activated mast cells or basophils.

Opsonization

The process of coating pathogens with proteins such as antibodies or complement fragments (opsonins) to enhance recognition and engulfment by phagocytes.

Phagocytosis

The cellular process where specialized immune cells recognize, engulf into a phagosome, and digest microorganisms or cellular debris.

Exudate

Protein- and cell-rich fluid that leaks out of blood vessels into surrounding tissues during inflammation.

Transduction

The initial step of pain processing where a noxious stimulus is converted into electrical action potentials at the nociceptor.

Transmission

The propagation of pain impulses along peripheral nerve fibers to the spinal cord dorsal horn and up to the brainstem and cortex.

A-delta Fibers

Myelinated, fast-conducting sensory fibers that transmit sharp, fast, well-localized nociceptive signals.

C Fibers

Unmyelinated, slow-conducting sensory fibers that carry dull, aching, poorly localized pain signals.

Pain Threshold

The lowest intensity of a painful stimulus at which a person first perceives sensation as pain.

Pain Tolerance

The maximum intensity or duration of pain that an individual is willing or able to endure before seeking relief.

Nociceptive Pain

Pain arising from intact, functioning nerve pathways reacting to actual or potential tissue damage.

Neuropathic Pain

Pain initiated or caused by a primary lesion, dysfunction, or damage in the peripheral or central nervous system.

Referred Pain

Pain perceived in a somatic region supplied by sensory fibers entering the spinal cord at the same level as visceral inputs from the injured site.

Morphine

A prototype strong opioid agonist that binds primary mu receptors to produce analgesia, sedation, euphoria, and respiratory depression.

Tolerance

A state of adaptation in which exposure to a drug induces changes that result in a diminution of one or more of the drug's effects over time.

Physical Dependence

A state of adaptation manifested by a drug-class-specific withdrawal syndrome that can be produced by abrupt cessation, rapid dose reduction, or administration of an antagonist.

Naloxone

A pure competitive opioid antagonist that rapidly displaces opioids from receptors to reverse opioid-induced CNS and respiratory depression.

Fentanyl

A potent synthetic opioid agonist approximately 100 times more potent than morphine, available in transdermal, transmucosal, and intravenous formulations.