Exam 1 - Intro to Microbio

What is a microorganism?

• a living thing ordinarily too small to be seen without magnification; an organism of microscopic size

What is a pathogen? How prevalent are pathogens among microbes overall?

• any agent that causes a disease (virus, bacterium, fungus, protozoan, or helminth)

• pathogens make up a small percentage of microbes

What is the definition of a prokaryotic vs. a eukaryotic cell?

• prokaryotic: pre-nucleus, or has no true nucleus

• eukaryotic: cell has a true nucleus

Identify the microorganisms we will be studying as either prokaryotic or eukaryotic. 

How do you correctly write a scientific name?

• Binomial (two name) system or nomenclature

• Genus (captialized) species (lower case) (italicized)

• Shorten: G. species

What are the three domains of life? Provide an example for each domain. 

• eukarya: animals, plants, protozoa, fungi

• archaea: methanococcus

• bacteria: gram-positive bacteria

State the contributions to the field of microbiology by the following scientists: Louis Pasteur, Joseph Lister, Robert Koch and Semmelweis. 

• louis pasteur: father of fermentation, wine and beer

• joseph lister: father of aseptic surgery, disinfecting our hands and the air using antiseptic chemicals prior to a surgery

• robert koch: father of medical bacteriology, establishes koch’s postulates, steps to verifying the germ theory and could identify if an organism was pathogenic and what disease it causes

• Semmelweis: father of hand hygiene, started the practice of handwashing before a physical examination