Untitled Flashcards Set

What are the benefits of fermentation?

Enhanced taste, extended shelf life (preservation), and in some cases better nutrition or safety.

Who is known as the father of Western medicine?

Hippocrates was known for believing that diseases had natural, not supernatural causes.

What did Thucydides contribute to the understanding of infections?

He observed that Athenian plague survivors were immune to infection afterward.

What is Varro's theory on disease?

He proposed that diseases could be caused by creatures that cannot be seen by the naked eye.

Who first described observations of bacteria as 'animalcules'?

Leeuwenhoek was the first to describe bacteria as 'animalcules' or 'wee little beasties'.

What is pasteurization?

A process developed by Pasteur that kills pathogens in food and drink.

What are Koch’s postulates?

A series of guidelines to identify the causative agent of a disease.

What are the two domains that lack a nucleus?

Bacteria and Archaea both lack a nucleus.

What are the main components of binomial nomenclature?

Genus and species.

What is taxonomy?

The scientific classification of living organisms, originally based on physical characteristics.

What is phylogeny in the context of taxonomy?

The organization of taxa that takes evolutionary relatedness into account.

What are the two types of prokaryotes?

Bacteria and Archaea.

What distinguishes Gram-positive bacteria from Gram-negative bacteria?

Gram-positive bacteria have a thick peptidoglycan layer while Gram-negative bacteria have a thin peptidoglycan layer and an outer membrane.

What role do pili play in bacteria?

Pili are used for attachment to surfaces and for the transfer of genetic material between cells.

What is unique about endospores in bacteria?

Endospores are a resistant form of bacteria that can endure extreme conditions.

What is the purpose of acid-base staining in microscopy?

To distinguish between cell types based on the charge of the chromophore.

What does 'exponential growth' mean in the context of bacterial cell division?

A phase where genetically identical bacteria grow rapidly, doubling at regular intervals.

What is disinfection?

Reduces the microbial load of an inanimate item through heat or chemicals.

What is sterile technique?

Process that completely eliminates all microbes from an object or area.

What is herd immunity?

When a sufficient proportion of a population is immune to an infectious disease, thereby providing a degree of protection to unprotected individuals.