4.3 Microbiology and Pathogens Practice Flashcards

A set of vocabulary-style flashcards based on lecture notes regarding the human microbiome, various cellular and non-cellular pathogens, and the details of parasitic life cycles and pasteurization.

Microbiome

Trillions of microorganisms, including bacteria and fungi, that live on and in humans and help defend against invaders and produce vitamins K and B.

Probiotics

Living organisms consumed by individuals to boost their gut flora.

Prebiotics

Substances that promote the activity or structure of the current gut microbiota.

Primary host

The organism used by a parasite during its adult stage.

Intermediate host

The organism used by a parasite during its larval stage, also known as the secondary host.

Endoparasites

Parasites that live inside the body of the host.

Ectoparasites

Parasites that live outside the host's body, such as fleas or ticks.

Non-cellular pathogens

Pathogens considered non-living because they are unable to undergo independent replication, including prions, viruses, and viroids.

Prions

Abnormal and infectious proteins derived from the terms protein and infection that convert normal proteins into prion proteins.

Transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSE)

Degenerative neurological diseases caused by prions that result in tiny holes in the brain, giving it a spongy appearance.

Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE)

Commonly known as ‘mad cow disease,’ a prion-based disease discovered in the United Kingdom in 1986.

Viruses

Obligate intracellular parasites containing genetic material ($DNA$ or $RNA$) and a protein coat ($capsid$) that must infect a host cell to reproduce.

Capsid

The protein coat that surrounds the genetic material of a virus.

Coccus

A spherical-shaped bacterium, such as $staphylococcus$.

Bacillus

A rod-shaped bacterium.

Spirochaete

A spiral-shaped bacterium.

Mycobacterium leprae

The rod-shaped bacterium responsible for causing leprosy, also known as Hansen's disease.

Protozoans

Single-celled cellular pathogens usually found within their host’s body, such as the parasites that cause malaria and African sleeping sickness.

Pasteurisation

A process developed by Louis Pasteur in 1864 that involves heating milk to $71.7\,^{\circ}C$ for $15$ to $25$ seconds, then cooling it to less than $3\,^{\circ}C$ to kill harmful microorganisms.

Plasmodium

The parasite that causes malaria, transmitted via the salivary glands of an infected mosquito.

Anopheles

The specific genus of female mosquito that acts as the vector for the malaria parasite.

Merozoites

New malaria parasites that are released when red blood cells burst, which then seek other cells to infect.

R21

A malaria vaccine being rolled out in 2023 by the World Health Organization ($WHO$), initially targeting children in Burkina Faso.