Microbial Biosphere: Introduction to Microbes and Microbiology

Flashcards covering key vocabulary, historical figures, and fundamental concepts from the Microbial Biosphere lecture notes, focusing on the introduction to microbes and microbiology.

Microorganism (microbe)

A living organism too small to be seen by the naked eye, typically less than 0.2 mm (200 µm) in diameter.

Cell

An membrane-bound living entity; the smallest unit capable of independent existence.

Prokaryotes

Living cells that do not contain a nucleus, are small (approx. 1-2 µm), and have a simple structure. All Bacteria and Archaea are prokaryotes.

Eukaryotes

Living cells that contain a true nucleus, are larger than prokaryotes (approx. 10-100 µm), and have a more complex structure, including organelles.

Organelle

A membrane-bound cellular structure that performs a specialized function within a eukaryotic cell.

Viruses

Acellular microbes made of protein and genetic material, smaller than prokaryotic cells (< 0.1 µm).

Metabolism

Chemical reactions in a cell, performed by enzymes, that transform nutrients from the environment into cellular material or waste.

Ubiquitous

Present everywhere at the same time; a characteristic often used to describe microbes.

Pathogens

Microbes that cause an infectious disease.

Human microbiome (normal microbiota)

The collection of microorganisms that reside on the human body and contribute to human health.

Bioremediation

The process of using microbes to clean up pollution.

Antonie van Leeuwenhoek

The first person to observe and describe microorganisms (1674).

Edward Jenner

Developed the first vaccine for smallpox (1796).

Louis Pasteur

Demonstrated the role of microbes in fermentation, discovered pasteurization, and disproved the Theory of Spontaneous Generation (1857).

Pasteurization

A process of applying heat to kill microbes and prevent spoilage.

Theory of Spontaneous Generation

The discredited idea that living organisms can arise spontaneously from non-living matter.

Theory of Biogenesis

The principle that living organisms arise only from pre-existing living organisms.

Joseph Lister

Pioneered the use of aseptic technique during surgery.

Robert Koch

Discovered that a bacterium (Bacillus anthracis) caused anthrax and developed Koch's postulates to link specific microbes to specific diseases.

Koch's Postulates

A set of four criteria used to prove that a specific microbe causes a specific disease (Germ Theory of Disease).

Alexander Fleming

Demonstrated the effectiveness and properties of penicillin as an antibiotic (1929).

Carl Woese

Identified the Three Domains of life (Bacteria, Archaea, Eukarya) using DNA sequences and discovered the domain Archaea.

Taxonomy

The science of classifying living organisms into groups (taxonomic lineages).

Binomial nomenclature

The system used for naming organisms with a two-part name (Genus species), introduced by Carl von Linne.

Carl von Linne

Known as the Father of Modern Taxonomy, who introduced binomial nomenclature.