Lecture 1: Main Themes in Microbiology

Microbiology

The study of microbes/ microorganisms which are organisms too small to see

Ubiquitous

Microbes can be found living in a diverse range of habitats and environments

Brief Description of Prokaryotic Cells

-Bacteria & Archaea

-No true nucleus

-One Membrane, no internal membranes

Brief Description of Eukaryotic Cells

-Large

-Contain a true nucleus

-Membrane enclosed organelles

-Fungi, Protists, & Helminths

Brief Description of Non-Cellular Microbes

-Smallest

-Infectious Particles

-Viruses & Prions

Taxonomy

Organization of living things into categories based on similaritiesNo

Nomenclature

Assignment of names to organisms based on taxonomic categories

Taxonomic Categories

Domain, Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, Species

Binomial Nomenclature

Genus, Species

Three Domains of Life

Bacteria, Archaea, and Eukarya

Abiogenesis Theory

All life arose from non-living sources spontaneously

proven wrong

Who disproved Abiogenesis fully?

Louis Pasteur in 1859

Who helped develop the modern microscope?

Robert Van Leeuwenhoek & *Robert Hooke*

Koch’s Postulates

1. A specific microbe can be linked to a disease

2. The microbe can be isolated and grown in pure culture

3. The pure culture will produce the disease when inoculate

4. It is possible to recover the organism in pure culture from an experimentally infected animal

John Tyndall

Discovered heat resistant endospore bacteria in dust and air. Advanced the idea of sterilization

Ignaz Semmelweis

Recommended hand washing to prevent disease spread, specifically in maternity wards

Joseph Lister

Developed the aseptic technique