eukaryotic and prokaryotic pathogens

What is Naegleria fowleri known for?

It is known as the 'brain-eating amoeba' and can cause severe brain infections.

What disease is caused by Histoplasma capsulatum?

It can cause lung disease, often associated with exposure to soil, bat guano, or bird droppings.

What type of infection does Candida albicans cause?

It causes yeast infections and can also lead to oral thrush.

What is Aspergillus and what does it cause?

Aspergillus is a type of fungus that can cause aspergillosis, particularly in immunocompromised individuals.

What is the life cycle of Pinworm (Enterobius vermicularis)?

Females lay eggs at night around the anus, causing itching, and it is often spread by children.

What is Trichomonas vaginalis and its impact?

It is a common STI that is often asymptomatic in men but can cause complications in women.

How is Trichinella spiralis contracted?

It is contracted by consuming undercooked pork, which can lead to trichinosis.

What does Cryptosporidium parvum cause?

It can contaminate drinking water and often causes intestinal issues, usually asymptomatic.

What is the significance of Taenia species?

They enter humans through undercooked, contaminated meat and are segmented with hooks at the head.

What is the mechanism of intoxication by certain pathogens?

Some pathogens cause illness through ingestion of toxins rather than infection.

What is the most common parasite in the United States?

Giardia lamblia, which travels through contaminated water from infected cysts.

What type of infection is caused by Entamoeba histolytica?

It is the primary cause of amoebic dysentery.

How is Plasmodium vivax transmitted?

It is transmitted by mosquito vectors and is the causative agent of malaria.

What type of pathogen is classified as an amoeba?

Amoeba is a type of protozoan pathogen.

Bacillus anthracis

Can be used as a biological weapon as it produces endospores. Cause of anthrax that presents itself in many forms.

Streptococcus pyogenes

Can cause skin infections such as impetigo as well as strep throat and necrotizing fasciitis.

Treponema pallidum

causative agent of the STI syphilis

Rickettsia rickettsii

causes rocky mountain spotted fever. transmitted by ticks

Bordetella pertussis

cause of whooping cough. paralyzes the movement of cilia

Neisseria meningitidis

Causes bacterial meningitis, diplococci. fastidious

Clostridium perfringens

common cause of food poisoning and gas gangrene when endospores enter a wound to produce a toxin

Clostridium difficile

common source of HAIs. results in serious and possibly fatal colitis

E. coli

facultative anaerobe that lives in large intestine. often in a mutualistic relationship with humans. can be pathogenic and some strains produce Shiga toxin

bifidobacterium species

Filamentous anaerobe. Used as a probiotic in yogurt.

Mycobacterium tuberculosis

impacts the lungs. difficult to treat and requires drugs for an extended period of time. must be viewed via acid-fast staining not gram staining

Staphylococcus aureus

increased concern due to many antibiotic resistant strains. normally part of our flora, some strains can produce toxins involved in toxic shock syndrome.

Chlamydia

most common STI, can also cause eye infections

Mycoplasma pneumoniae

no cell wall and can be a wide variety of shapes. causes mild pneumonia

Staphylococcus epidermidis

normally part of healthy immune system found on the skin. can cause infections in skin wounds or in people that are immunocompromised with an intravenous catheter

bacteroides species

obligate anaerobes that live in the large intestine. prevent pathogens from colonizing large intestine

Corynebacterium diphtheria

produces a toxin that forms a pseudomembrane in the back of the throat and causes difficulty breathing. Club shaped bacilli

Clostridium botulinum

produces the most lethal toxin known. causes flaccid paralysis

Neisseria gonorrhoeae

fastidious, STI

Pseudomonas aeruginosa

resistant to many antibiotics, can infect wounds and burns among many other infections. Often causes infections in patients on ventilators

Clostridium tetani

spastic paralysis. produces a neurotoxin that blocks nerve impulses involved in muscle contraction. Produces an endospore

Borrelia burgdorferi

transmitted by ticks and produces a bull's eye rash. causes lyme disease