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Chapter 6
SCC Bio229 - Ch 6
95
Microbiology
Undergraduate 1
03/22/2014

Additional Microbiology Flashcards

 


 

Cards

Term
microbial growth
Definition
  • referring to the increase in size of a population of microbes
  • not individual microbe size- but individual reproduction contributes to growth
Term
three things that all cells need for metabolism
Definition
  • a carbon source
  • a source of energy
  • a source of electrons or hydrogen atoms
Term
autotrophs
Definition
  • organisms that utilize an inorganic source of carbon (ie: CO2) as their sole source of carbon
  • these acquire electrons or hydrogen atoms from inorganic molecules=lithotrophs
Term
heterotrophs
Definition
  • catabolize reduced organic molecules (ie: proteins, carbs, amino acids, and/or fatty acids) they acquire from other organisms
  • these acquire electrons from the same organic molecules that provide them carbon=organotrophs
Term
chemotrophs
Definition
organisms that acquire energy from redox reactions involving inorganic and organic chemicals
Term
phototrophs
Definition
organisms that use light as their energy source
Term
four basic groups of organisms based on their energy and carb sources:
Definition
  • photoautotrophs- light and CO2
  • chemoautotrophs- redox rxns and CO2
  • photoheterotrophs- light and organic molecules
  • chemoheterotrophs- redox reactions and organic molecules
Term
limiting nutrient
Definition
  • a chemical that is needed in order to continue metabolism
  • lack of this nutrient interrupts metabolism
Term
organotrophs
Definition
(heterotrophs) acquire their electrons from the same organic molecules that provide them carbon
Term
lithotrops
Definition
(autotrophs) acquire electrons or hydrogen atoms from inorganic molecules
Term
obligate aerobes
Definition
  • oxygen is essential for these organisms because it serves as the final electron acceptor of electron transport chains
  • algae, most fungi and protozoa, and many prokaryotes
Term
obligate anaerobes
Definition
oxygen is a "deadly poison" for these organisms
Term
four toxic forms of oxygen
Definition
  • singlet oxygen: neutralized by pigments called carotenoids
  • superoxide radical: detoxified by superoxide dismutase
  • peroxide anion: detoxified by catalase or peroxidase
  • hydroxyl radical: most reactive of the toxic forms of O2
Term
singlet oxygen
Definition
  • molecular oxygen with electrons that have been boosted to a higher energy state, typically during aerobic metabolism
  • very reactive oxidizing agent.
  • human WBC's use it to oxidize pathogens
  • phototrophs contain pigments called "carotenoids" that prevent toxicity by removing the excess energy of singlet oxygen
Term
superoxide radical
Definition
  • formed during the incomplete reduction of O2 during electron transport in aerobes and during metabolism by anaerobes in the presence of O2
  • so reactive and toxic that aerobes must produce enzymes called "superoxide dismutases"
  • anaerobes lack superoxide dismutase, therefore susceptible to this particular O2 toxicity
Term
peroxide anion
Definition
  • another highly reactive oxidant contained within hydrogen peroxide that is formed during reactions catalyzed by superoxide dismutase
  • peroxide anion is what makes hydrogen peroxide an antimicrobial
  • aerobes contain either catalase or peroxidase in order to detoxify
Term
hydroxyl radical
Definition
  • most toxic form of oxygen
  • result from ionizing radiation and from the incomplete reduction of hydrogen peroxide
  • this does not accumulate in aerobic cells (because of catalase and peroxidase)
Term
facultative anaerobes
Definition
  • aerobes which can maintain life via fermentation or anaerobic respiration, though their metabolic efficiency is often reduced in the absence of oxygen
  • a few yeasts and numerous prokaryotes
Term
aerotolerant anaerobes
Definition
  • microorganisms which prefer anerobic conditions but can tolerate low levels of oxygen
  • they do not use aerobic metabolism
  • tolerate oxygen by having some of the enzymes that detoxify oxygen's poisonious forms
Term
microaerophiles
Definition
  • organisms which require low levels of oxygen
  • ie: H. pylori requires oxygen levels of 2 -10%
Term

nitrogen 

(for growth requirements)

Definition
  • essential element for growth
  • contained in many organic compounds including the amine group in amino acids and part of nucleotide bases
  • often a growth-limiting nutrient for many organisms
  • acquired from organic and inorganic compounds
  • most photosynthetic organisms can reduce nitrate to ammonia (which can then be used for biosynthesis)
  • some bacteria capable of nitrogen fixation
Term
nitrogen fixation
Definition
  • process of reducing nitrogen gas (N2) to ammonia (NH3)
  • few bacteria are capable of this process, notably many cyanobacteria, as well as Rhizobium
  • essential for life on earth because nitrogen-fixers provide nitrogen in a usable form to other organisms
Term

phosphorus

(for growth requirements)

Definition
component of phospholipid membranes, DNA, RNA, and some proteins
Term

sulfur

(for growth requirements)

Definition
  • component of sulfur-containing amino acids
  • these bind to one another via disulfide bonds that are critical to the tertiary structure of proteins
Term
lithotrophic photoautotrophs
Definition
  • microorganisms that can synthesize all of their metabolic and structural needs from inorganic nutrients
  • they have every enzyme and cofactor needed to produce all of their cellular components
  • includes: algae and photosynthetic bacteria
Term
growth factors
Definition
  • note: most organisms can not synthesize all of their needed organic chemicals
  • definition: organic chemical such as a vitamin required in very small amounts for metabolism
  • recall: vitamins constitute all or part of many coenzymes
  • other examples: some amino acids, purines, pyrimidines, cholesterol, NADH, and heme
Term

temperature

(for growth requirements)

Definition
  • effects the 3-D configurations of biological molecules
  • can denature proteins
  • can alter temperature-sensitive hydrogen bonds of proteins
  • can also effect lipids within membranes
Term
minimum growth temperature
Definition
the lowest temperature at which an organism is able to conduct metabolism
Term
maximum growth temperature
Definition
highest temperature at which an organism continues to metabolize
Term
optimum growth temperature
Definition
temperature at which an organism's metabolic activities produce the highest growth rate
Term
psychrophiles
Definition
microorganisms which grow best at temperatures below 15*C
Term
mesophiles
Definition
  • organisms that grow best between temperatures ranging from 20*C - 40*C
  • note: body temperature is 37*C, so most human pathogens are mesophiles
Term
thermoduric organisms
Definition
mesophiles that can survive brief periods at higher temperatures
Term
thermophiles
Definition
organisms which grow at temperatures above 45*C in habitats such as compost piles and hot springs
Term
hyperthermophiles
Definition
usually archea, grow in water above 80*C, others live at temperatures above 100*C
Term
pH growth requirements
Definition
organisms are sensitive to changes in acidity because hydrogen ions and hydroxyl ions interfere with hydrogen bonding within proteins and nucleic acids
Term
neutrophiles
Definition
  • these grow best in a narrow range around neutral pH, usually between 6.5-7.5
  • includes: most bacteria and protozoa, inluding pathogens
  • note: this is the pH range for most of the tissues and organs within the human body
Term
acidophiles
Definition
  • organisms which grow best in an acidic habitats
  • obligate acidophiles: require an acidic environment and die if the pH approaches 7
  • acid-tolerant microbes: merely survive in acid without preferring it
  • ie: H. pylori
Term
alkalinophiles
Definition
live in alkaline soils and water up to pH 11.5
Term
osmotic pressure
Definition
  • the pressure exerted on a semipermeable membrane by a solution containing solutes
  • higher concentration of solutes = hypertonic
  • lower concentration of solutes = hypotonic
Term
crenation
Definition
shriveling of a cell in a hypertonic environment
Term
obligate halophiles
Definition
  • microorganism requiring high osmotic pressure
  • ie: Great salt lake or smaller salt ponds
Term
facultative halophiles
Definition
microbes that do not require high salt concentrations but can tolerate them
Term
hydrostatic pressure
Definition
  • water exerts pressure in proportion to its depth
  • for every additional 10 m of depth, water pressure increases 1 atmosphere (atm)
Term
barophiles
Definition
  • organisms that live under extreme hydrostatic pressure
  • their membranes and enzymes depend on pressure to maintain their three dimensional shapes
Term
antagonistic relationships
Definition
relationships in which one organism harms or kills another organism
Term
synergistic relationships
Definition
individual members of an association cooperate such that each receives benefits that exceed those that would result if each lived by itself, even though each member could live separately
Term
symbiotic relationships
Definition
organisms live in such close nutritional or physical contact that they became interdependent
Term
biofilms
Definition
  • complex relationships among numerous microorganisms, often different species, attached to surfaces
  • they develop an extracellular matrix, composed of DNA, proteins, and primarily the tangled fibers of polysaccharides the cell's glycocalyces
Term
quorom sensing
Definition
process by which bacteria respond to changes in microbial density by utilizing signal and receptor molecules
Term
inoculum
Definition
  • sample of microorganisms
  • usually placed in media in order to culture
Term
medium
Definition
collection of nutrients used for cultivating microorganisms
Term
culture
Definition
  • can refer to either the act of cultivating organisms (verb)
  • or the microorganisms cultivated (noun)
Term
colonies
Definition
cultures that are visible on the surface of solid media
Term
clinical specimen
Definition
  • sample of human material, such as feces or blood, that is examined or tested for the presence of microbes
  • often transported in special transport media
Term
pure cultures
Definition
  • cultures composed of cells arising from a single progenitor
  • aka "axenic"
  • the progenitor=CFU's
Term
CFU's
Definition
  • colony forming units
  • a single cell or related cells that produce a colony
Term
defined medium
Definition
  • aka synthetic medium
  • one in which the exact chemical composition is known
Term
fastidious organisms
Definition
  • these require a relatively large number of growth factors
  • these can be used to test for presence of the specific growth factors needed by the organism (living assays)
Term
complex media
Definition
  • culturing media that contains nutrients released by the partial digestion of yeast, soy, beef, or other proteins; thus the exact chemical composition is unknown
  • most chemoheterotrophs, including pathogens, are grown in this type of media
Term
selective media
Definition
typically contain substances that either favor the growth of particular microorganisms or inhibit the growth of unwanted ones
Term
differential media
Definition
formulated such that either the presence of visual changes of the medium or differences in the appearance of colonies help microbiologists differentiate among different kinds of bacteria growing on the medium
Term
MacConkey agar
Definition
  • both selective and differential medium
  • inhibits the growth of Gram-positive bacteria
  • differentiates lactose-fermenting from non-lactose-fermenting Gram-negative bacteria
Term
reducing media
Definition
  • special media that provides better anaerobic culturing conditions
  • contains compounds such as sodium thioglycollate that chemically combine with free oxygen and remove it from the medium
Term
transport media
Definition
media used by hospital personnel to carry clinical specimens of feces, urine, saliva, sputum, blood, and other bodily fluids in such a way that people are not infected and the specimens are not contaminated
Term
animal and cell culture
Definition
living tissue required to grow and cultivate specific types of microorganisms
Term
carbon dioxide incubators
Definition
  • machines that electronically monitor and control CO2 levels
  • these provide atmospheres that mimic the environments of the intestinal tract, the respiratory tract, and other body tissues 
Term
candle jar
Definition
  • smaller and less expensive alternative to CO2 incubator
  • culture plates are sealed in a jar with a lit candle, the flame consumes most of the O2 replacing it with CO2 and the candle extinguishes itself
  • creates an environment suitable for aerotolerant anaerobes, microaerophiles, and capnophiles
Term
capnophiles
Definition
microorganisms that grow best with high levels of carbon dioxide in addition to low levels of oxygen
Term
enrichment culture
Definition
  • technique used to enhance the growth of less abundant microorganisms by using a selective medium
  • designed to increase very small numbers of a chosen microbe to observable levels
  • method introduced by Beijernick in the late 1800's
Term
cold enrichment
Definition
  • incubation of a specimen in a refrigerator to enhance the growth of cold-tolerant species
  • ie: Vibrio cholerae
Term

refrigeration

(for storage)

Definition
best technique for storing cultures for short periods of time
Term
deep-freezing
Definition
  • long-term storage of bacterial cultures at temperatures ranging from -50*C to -95*C
  • stores for several years
Term
lyophilization
Definition
  • removal of water from a frozen culture or other substance by means of vacuum pressure
  • used for long-term storage preservation of food and cells
  • typically can be stored for decades
Term
binary fission
Definition
  • reproduction process of most unicellular microorganisms
  • process in which a cell grows to twice its normal size and divides in half to produce two daughter cells of equal size
Term
binary fission steps
Definition
  1. cell replicates its chromosomes and attaches to the cell membrane
  2. cell elongates and growth between attachment sites pushes the chromosomes apart
  3. the cell forms a new cytoplasmic membrane and wall (septum) across the midline
  4. when the septum is complete, the daughter cells may remain attached or may separate completely
Term
logarithmic growth
Definition
  • aka exponential growth
  • increase of size of a microbial population in which the number of cells doubles in a fixed interval of time
  • to calculate the number of cells in a population, we multiply the original number of cells by 2n
Term
generation time
Definition
  • the time required for a bacterial cell to grow and divide
  • the time required for a population of cells to double in number
Term
growth curve
Definition
a graph that plots the number of organisms in a growing population over time
Term
semilogarithmic graph
Definition
only one axis uses a log scale
Term
lag phase
Definition
  • cells are adjusting to their new environment
  • most cells do not reproduce immediately, but instead actively synthesize enzymes to utilize novel nutrients in the medium
Term
log phase
Definition
  • population increases logarithmically
  • reproduction rate reaches a constant as DNA and protein syntheses are maximized
Term
stationary phase
Definition
  • the number of dying cells equals the number of cells being produced
  • the size of the population remains constant
Term
death phase
Definition
  • cells die at a faster rate than those being produced
  • occurs as nutrients become more limited and waste products increase
Term
chemostat
Definition
  • an open system in which fresh medium is continuously supplied while an equal amount of old medium (containing microbes) is removed
  • done to maintain a particular phase of microbial growth
Term
serial dilution
Definition

a stepwise dilution of a liquid culture in which the dilution factor at each step is constant

Term
viable plate count
Definition
  • estimation of the size of a microbial population based on the number of colonies formed when diluted samples are plated onto agar media
  • count the colonies on a plate with 25-250 colonies and multiply by the reciprocal of the dilution ratio to estimate the number of bacteria per ml of the original culture
Term
membrane filtration
Definition
  • technique used if the population density is very small
  • large sample is poured through a filter small enough to trap cells
  • the number of colonies trapped on the filter is equal to the number of CFU's in the original large sample
Term
most probable number (MPN)
Definition
  • statistical estimation of the size of a microbial population based upon the dilution of a sample required to eliminate microbial growth
  • based on the fact that the more bacteria there are in a sample, the more dilutions are required to reduce their number to zero
  • number of tubes showing growth in each dilution set is used to enter into an MPN table
Term
Petroff-Hausser counting chamber
Definition
  • sample is placed onto a cell counter, which is a glass slide composed of an etched grid positioned beneath a glass cover slip
  • calculated by multiplying the number of bacteria per square by 1,250,000
Term
Coulter counter
Definition
  • a device that directly counts cells as they interrupt an electrical current flowing across a narrow tube held in front of an electronic detector
  • flow cytometry is a variation of the Coulter counter which uses a light-sensitive detector to record changes in light transmission through the tube as cells pass
Term
metabolic activity
Definition
  • indirect counting method
  • under standard temperature conditions, the rate at which a population of cells utilizes and produces wastes depends on their number
  • once the metabolic rate is established, scientists can indirectly estimate the number of cells in a culture
Term
dry weight
Definition
  • abundance of filamentous microorganisms are difficult to measure by direct methods
  • instead these are filtered from their culture medium, dried and weighed
  • suitable for broth cultures
Term
turbidity
Definition
  • as bacteria reproduce in a broth culture, the broth often becomes turbid (cloudy) 
  • the more bacteria within a broth, the more light will be absorbed and scattered, and less light will pass through and strike a light-sensitive detector
  • only accurate if cells are suspended uniformly (no sediment)
Term
genetic methods
Definition
scientists can isolate unique DNA sequences representing unculturable prokaryotic species using genetic techniques such as polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and hybridization of DNA that codes for ribosomal RNA
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