Download Microbiology

Microbiology
What is microbiology?
 Explores microscopic organisms
 Examples: viruses, bacteria,
protozoa, parasites and some fungi.
 All of these organisms are
unicellular (one cell) and come in a
variety of shapes and forms.
Viruses
 Non-living made of DNA, RNA and a protein coat.
 Need a host cell to reproduce.
 Invade healthy cells and use it to make more viruses




and usually kills the healthy cells in the process.
Among the most widespread illnesses in humans.
Range from mild fevers to some forms of cancer.
Transmission varies. Human contact, water or insect
bites.
Vaccines and anti-viral drugs are used to control and
prevent the spread of viral diseases.
Virus Examples
Hepatitus
Herpes
Influenza
(flu)
Mumps
Rabies
Chicken Pox
Norovirus
(stomach)
Rhinovirus
(cold)
Measles
HIV
Virus Shapes
Spacecraft
Cylinder
Sphere
Crystal
Bacteria
What are they?
 Bacteria are prokaryotic single-celled organisms.
 Prokaryotic means that the organelles inside do
not have their own membranes covering them.
 The opposite would be eukaryotic cells. These
have membranes covering the organelles.
 Think of them this way: eukaryotic cells are like a
house made of many separate rooms. Prokaryotic
cells are like a big studio apartment.
Where do they live?
 Bacteria can live in a variety of places.
 With oxygen
 Without oxygen
 Extreme heat
 Extreme cold
Bacterial Reproduction
 Bacteria reproduce through binary fission.
 Binary fission is a type of asexual reproduction.
 Bacteria can grow and divide extremely rapidly and
the population can double very quickly.
 A biologist notices that a certain bacterium splits into 2
separate bacteria once every 15 minutes. If there was one
bacterium on the slide 3 hours ago, how many are there on
the slide now? At 4 hours? At 5 hours? At 6 hours? At 7
hours?

Time (min)
# of bacteria
Reproduction Rate
 Bacteria can reproduce very
quickly.
 They can reproduce every 15-20
minutes.
 1 bacteria can produce over 250
million cells in 7 hours.
Treatment of Bacterial Infections
 Antibiotics
 Make sure to take them as directed.
 Too many antibiotics can cause
bacteria to mutate and then the
antibiotics are ineffective.
Virus vs Bacteria
Epidemic vs. Pandemic
 Epidemic – a fast spreading of a
disease through a population.
 Pandemic – a fast spreading of a
disease through a population that
reaches into multiple countries and
possibly worldwide.