Microbe-Human Interactions

These flashcards cover key vocabulary terms related to Microbe-Human Interactions, health, and disease.

Colonization

Microbes living in or on the human body without causing disease.

Infection

When pathogenic microbes penetrate host defenses, enter tissues, and multiply.

Resident microbiota

Microbes that are permanently present in the human body and do not cause disease.

Transient microbiota

Microbes that temporarily occupy the human body.

Pathogen

Microbe capable of causing disease.

Pathogenesis

The development of disease.

Normal microbiota

Microbes normally found in and on the human body.

Virulence

The degree of pathogenicity or illness a microbe can cause.

Exotoxin

Soluble substances secreted into host tissues by living bacteria that can destroy specific host cells.

Endotoxin

A component of the outer membrane of Gram-negative bacteria that can cause systemic inflammatory effects.

ID50

Infectious dose needed to cause infection in 50% of a host population.

LD50

Lethal dose for 50% of inoculated hosts.

Portal of entry

The site at which a microbe enters the body.

Asymptomatic infection

An infection that does not exhibit noticeable symptoms.

Epidemiology

The study of disease distribution and determinants in populations.

Reservoir

The primary habitat in the natural world from which a pathogen originates.

Vector

An organism that transmits a pathogen from one host to another.

Zoonosis

An infection that is transmissible from animals to humans.

Healthcare-associated infections (HAIs)

Infections that are acquired or develop during a hospital stay.