Microbiology and Genetics Classification and Terminology

Vocabulary practice flashcards covering taxonomic ranks, genetic mechanisms, mutations, bacterial genera, viral structures, and microbiology definitions from the lecture notes.

Taxonomic

An eight-level system used by scientists to classify all living organisms from the broadest group to the most specific individual.

Domain

The highest and largest rank of life, divided into three main groups: Bacteria, Achaea, and Eukarya.

Kingdom

Broad groups of living things such as Animals, Plants, Fungi, and Protista.

Phylum

A biological rank that subdivides kingdoms based on major body plans or structural features (plants and fungi often use the term division instead).

Class

A further breakdown of Phyla into more closely related groups (for example, the class Mammalia inside the Phylum Chordata).

Order

A collection of related families that share a common set of traits (such as primates).

Genus

A group of very similar species (such as Homo).

Species

The most specific and lowest rank, representing a single type of organism that can interbreed (such as sapiens).

Specific epithet

The second part of a scientific name in binomial nomenclature that identifies a specific species within a genus.

Homologous recombination

A cellular process in which nucleotide sequences are exchanged between two similar or identical molecules of double-stranded or single-stranded nucleic acids.

Transposon

Specialized DNA sequences (also known as jumping genes) that can move or relocate (translocate) to different positions within a genome.

Transformation

A type of horizontal gene transfer where a bacterium takes up free DNA from the environment, which may be incorporated into the bacterial chromosome and expressed to produce new proteins or traits.

Conjugation

A process where DNA is transferred directly from one bacterium to another through cell-to-cell contact, usually through a pilus, allowing the recipient to express transferred genes and develop new traits such as antibiotic resistance.

Transduction

A mechanism of horizontal gene transfer where a bacteriophage (a virus that infects bacteria) moves DNA from one bacterium to another without requiring physical cell-to-cell contact.

Transfection

A process that introduces foreign nucleic acids into cells using non-viral methods, in contrast to transduction which delivers genetic material using a viral vector.

Plasmid

A small, circular, double-stranded DNA molecule that is physically separate from a bacterium's chromosomal DNA and replicates independently.

Insertion

Also known as insertion sequences, the smallest type of autonomous transposable elements (jumping genes) that move around within bacterial chromosomes and plasmids.

Inversion

A reversible genetic mechanism where a specific segment of DNA physically flips (reverses its orientation) on the chromosome.

Frame shift mutation

A genetic mutation caused by the insertion or deletion (indel) of nucleotide bases in numbers that are not a multiple of three within a DNA coding sequence.

Nonsense mutation

A genetic change that turns a normal amino acid-coding codon into a premature stop codon in a messenger RNA (mRNA) sequence.

Silent mutation

A change in a DNA nucleotide sequence that does not alter the resulting amino acid sequence of a protein.

Codon

A sequence of three consecutive nucleotides in DNA or messenger RNA (mRNA) that codes for a specific amino acid or signals the start or stop of protein synthesis.

Mutagenic

A physical or chemical substance that permanently changes the genetic material (usually DNA) of an organism.

Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR)

A laboratory technique used to rapidly make millions to billions of copies of a specific DNA segment from a small sample.

Biochemical test

A clinical blood/fluid panel used in medicine or an academic/standardized exam in school.

Morphology

The study of form and structure, most commonly applied in linguistics and biology.

Serology

The scientific study of blood serum.

Vector

A DNA molecule (such as a plasmid or a virus) used as a vehicle to carry foreign genetic material into a host cell.

Hyphae

Long, thread-like, branching tubular filaments that form the main structural and functional unit of most multicellular fungi.

Capsid

The outer protein shell of a virus that encloses and protects its genetic material (DNA or RNA).

Matrix protein

A structural protein found in many enveloped viruses that links the viral envelope (the outer lipid membrane) to the inner core (the nucleocapsid).

Envelope

The multi-layered structure that surrounds the cytoplasm of a cell, providing structural integrity, osmotic protection, and elective permeability.

Glycoproteins

A protein that has one or more carbohydrate (sugar) chains covalently attached to amino acid side-chains.

Bacteriophage

A type of virus that exclusively infects and replicates within bacteria and archaea.

Prophage

A bacteriophage (virus) genome that has inserted itself into a bacterial chromosome or exists as an extrachromosomal plasmid.

Prion

An infectious, misfolded protein particle that lacks genetic material (DNA or RNA).

Yersinia

A genus of rod-shaped, Gram-negative bacteria.

Vibrio

A genus of comma-shaped, Gram-negative bacteria.

Neisseria

A human-specific, anaerobic, Gram-negative diplococcus bacterium.

Borrelia

A Gram-negative, aerobic, encapsulated coccobacillus bacterium that causes whooping cough (pertussis).

Bacillus

A large, Gram-positive, rod-shaped, spore-forming bacterium that causes anthrax (originating from livestock and wildlife).

Pseudomonas

A Gram-negative, rod-shaped bacterium found widely in soil, water, and moist environments.

Rhizobium

A genus of Gram-negative, aerobic, rod-shaped soil bacteria.

Cyanobacteria

Gram-negative, photosynthetic bacteria found worldwide in fresh, brackish, and marine water.

E. coli

A diverse group of Gram-negative bacteria that live in the lower intestines of humans and warm-blooded animals.

S. aureus

A round, Gram-positive bacterium that commonly lives harmlessly on the skin and the nasal passages.

S. pyogenes

A Gram-positive, round bacterium that grows in chains and is commonly known as Group A.

Papilloma virus

The most common sexually transmitted infection (STI), affecting the skin and moist mucous membranes.

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)

One of the most common human viruses in the world.