M1L3 - Microbial contamination

Endotoxin

This is a structural element of a microbe which can induce a disease state

Exotoxin

This is a toxin produced extracellularly by a microbe, e.g. botulinum toxin, tetanus toxin

Prion

This is a protein infectious agent which causes spongiform encephalopathy

Bacteriophage

This is a virus that infects bacteria and kills them

Bacterial endospore

This is a heat and chemical resistant dormant survival structure produced in times of stress

Dipicolinic acid

This chelates with calcium to form a matrix which removes water from the endospore core

Atmospheric contamination

This is influenced by activity, room cleanliness, humidity

Water contamination

This is influenced by raw water quality, processing and distribution

Microflora contamination

This is influenced by skin and respiratory tract microbes, poor hygiene, open wounds, nasal carriage

Raw material contamination

This is influenced by material source, requires extensive physical and chemical processing

Equipment contamination

This is influenced by cleanliness of pipelines, other containers, regularity of cleaning

Packaging contamination

This is influenced by the composition of the containers and storage conditions

Building contamination

This is influenced by the cleanliness of the environment, walls, ceilings, floors, drains