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Questions and answers related to microbiology, including topics such as nucleic acids, cells, amino acids, enzymes, metabolism, and photosynthesis. It also covers microscopy and staining techniques. The questions are multiple choice and true/false, and the answers provide explanations and additional information. likely intended for students studying microbiology and preparing for exams.
Typology: Exams
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DNA- deoxyribonucleic acid RNA- Ribonucleic acid DNA- Cellular life has DNA and a role that DNA has is long-term storage of information, it holds the characteristics of living organisms. RNA- Is the carrier of information in form of amino acid sequence. It converts the information in the DNA and synthesizes proteins
False. Viruses are not living and as such are not considered microorganisms. Viruses can, however, be classified as microbes, a more general term that includes microorganisms and viruses.
A cell.
Macromolecules A student may also answer: Proteins, Lipids, Nucleic acids and Polysaccharides but they must answer with all four to be fully correct.
20
An essential amino acid cannot be produced by the human body and as such must be take in from the environment through alternative sources (i.e) food.
A and C
A. 1
B. 3
C. 6
D. 12
C. The molecular formula of Glucose is C 6 H 12 O 6
True of False: The genetic material within a prokaryotic cell is contained within a membrane-enclosed region.
False. Only eukaryotic cells contain its genetic material within a nucleus
True or False: Prokaryotic cells can be subdivided into Bacteria and Archaea.
True
3’ GGTCATCG 5’ 5’ CC AGC 3’
3’ GGTCATCG 5’ 5’ CCAGTAGC 3’ There are 2 bonds formed between A and T, and 3 bonds between G and C.
True or False: Archaea is noted for its ability to survive under harsh conditions.
True. Archaea can often be found in harsh conditions such as high salt levels, high acid conditions, high temperatures and even oxygen-poor conditions.
A,B,C,D
True
Light (sunlight); chemical (sugars)
A, C and D all contain chitin.
True.
Describe the 4 basic bacterial morphologies.
Coccus (round/spherical), bacillus (rod), vibrio (curved rod) or spirillum (spiral/corkscrew).
A, B, C, E
B. Ribosomes are located in the cytoplasm of prokaryotic cells and in the ER of eukaryotic cells.
A. Cell wall B. Lysosome C. Centriole D. Rough endoplasmic reticulum E. Plasma membrane F. Nucleus G. Golgi apparatus
True.
False. Enzymes are proteins that catalyze chemical reactions.
Cofactors are usually metal ions and assist enzyme during the catalysis reaction.
Catabolism is the process of breaking down larger molecules into useful energy sources.
The anabolic process would be active as it (by definition) is involved in the building up of small complexes into larger complexes.
ATP has the energy (phosphate group) to donate while ADP can accept energy in the form of a phosphate group. Thus, ATP can be reduced (ATP →ADP + Pi) while ADP can be built into ATP (ADP + Pi →ATP).
Phototrophic microorganism.
An organism that derives its energy by removing electrons from elemental sulfur would be classified as a?
Lithotroph
B. The chemical compound losing the phosphate group is referred to as the phosphorylated reactive intermediate.
The breakdown of glucose goes through (1) Glycolysis then (2) Fermentation or Respiration and finally through (3) the electron transport chain (ETC).
The electron transport chain yields 34 ATP while both glycolysis and fermentation (or respiration) each yield only 2 ATP.
The reactants are to the left of the arrow: Glucose and 2NAD+
Glucose-6-phosphate (G6P)
False. Fermentation only reduces NADH back to NAD+
C and D. The TCA cycle produces an abundance of reduced electron carriers (NADH and FADH 2 ).
False. The products of the TCA cycle (reduced electron carriers) enter and drive the production of ATP via the electron transport system.
A, C, D can all be used as alternative energy sources.
B and D. Proteases breakdown proteins while lipases breakdown lipids.
True
Both chloroplasts and chlorophyll are associated with photosynthesis. Chloroplasts are the double membrane- enclosed organelles that contain the photosynthetic pigment chlorophyll.
True
A and D.
The process of converting light energy into chemical energy (photophosphorylation) always occurs in the membrane.
False. The term ‘dark reactions’ (also known as the Calvin Cycle) simply denotes the second stage in photosynthesis—dark reactions do not actually require darkness in order to occur.
Six.
CO 2 + ATP + NADPH + H 20 → C 6 H 12 O 6 + ADP + NADP+
6 CO 2 + 18 ATP + 12 NADPH + 12 H 20 → C 6 H 12 O 6 + 18 ADP + 12 NADP+
A- Lyases B- Transferases
C- Oxioreductaces D- Hydrolases E- Ligases F- Isomerases
1D 1. A-B + H2O → A-OH + B-H Hydrolases 2F 2. A-B→ B-A Isomerases 3E 3. A + B → A-B Ligases 4A 4. A-B → A + B Lyases
B. A micrometer is one-millionth of a meter.
False. A nanometer is 1,000 times smaller than a micrometer.
Resolution refers to the distance between two objects at which the objects still can be seen as separate. Poor or low resolution means two (or more) objects may appear as one.
Contrast is the difference in light absorbance between two objects. Poor contrast gives a high background and makes the visualization of multiple objects difficult. For instance, trying to identify 2 dark colored objects at night (low light = low contrast) versus the same 2 objects in the middle of a sunny afternoon (bright light against 2 dark objects = high contrast).
A. Only the oculars (eyepiece) and the objectives contribute to the magnification of the sample. Since the eyepiece is fixed, only the objectives could be altered.
20 x 15 = 300x magnification
True. Adherent, flat and unstained cells are almost invisible due to the limits on both resolution and contrast. Therefore, cell staining is often required to adequately image the sample.
A and C. The unaided eye can, on average, clearly resolve objects > 100 μm
A. Stage B. Fine Adjustment Knob C. Iris Diaphragm D. Neck E. Condenser Lens F. Eyepiece G. Objective H. Base I. Coaxial Controls
1F
2D
3B
4G
5A
6H
This type of microscope is best suited for visualizing GFP, RFP and YFP proteins.
Fluorescence
Phase-Contrast
Dark Field
Confocal
The image was captured using a Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM). The above image shows the trademark ‘shell’ image (no subcellular organelles are visible) reminiscent of SEM. Only TEM is capable of visualizing subcellular substrucutres.
Purple; Thick
Pink; Thin
True.
False. Both heat and chemical fixation strategies will kill the cell, making motility observations impossible.
Simple stain. You could use any of the following: methylene blue, crystal violet, safranin or fuschin.
You would expect to see red cells (TB+) on a blue background (TB negative).
True. Giemsa stains are often used in the clinical setting to aid in the diagnosis of blood parasites.
False. Growth media is designed to simply support (and not restrict) microbial growth.
B. Differential media distinguishes between two, often related, microbes.
A fastidious microbe is an organism with complex growth requirements such that if absent it will not grow. Enriched medias thus contain these specific and essential nutrients required for the growth of a particular subset of microorganisms.
False. LB agar is the most basic type of agar and like LB media supports the growth of virtually all microbes without restriction.
Agar is used to create a solid, smooth surface on which microbes can grow.
C. CNA agar is similar to BAP as it is also enriched with blood and allows for differentiation based on hemolytic patterns.
False. Chocolate (cocoa) is never added to the media. The name is derived simply based on the color that actually comes from the presence of ‘cooked’ (lysed) red blood cells in the media.
No. A Gram stain would not be necessary, as only Gram-Negative microbes will grow on MacConkey agar. Thus, E. coli is a Gram-Negative microbe.
The microbe should be plated on SMAC (Sorbitol-MacConkey agar) as it is specifically formulated to detect O157:H7. Pathogenic E. coli (O157:H7) cannot ferment sorbitol while non-pathogenic E. coli can ferment both soribitol and lactose. Therefore, colonies that ferment (acidic conditions; non-pathogenic) can be differentiated from non-fermenters (neutral to basic conditions; pathogenic).
Metallic Green.
D. Mannitol salt agar
Plating.
The primary advantage is that cells are held into place. When grown in a nutrient broth, bacterial cells can multiply but are free to move around in solution. When grown on agar within a petri dish the fixed in such as way as to form colonies.
False. When an individual colony is visible on agar the bacterial cell has multiplied often a million times over.
True. The purpose of the quadrant streak is to generate individual colonies such that a single (pure) bacterial sample can be isolated.
A quadrant (aka phase-dilution) streak. The resulting gradient should always contain within it the growth of individual colonies.
P2 (Phase 2) would contain a higher concentration of bacteria than Phase 4 (P4). The phases rank (from highest to lowest), P1 > P2 > P3 > P4.
True. Failure to do so would prevent the establishment of a dilution gradient, as the same bacterial concentration would be spread across both phase regions.
A researcher may either (1) opt to perform only a 3-phase dilution streak or (2) pass the loop through the previous phase multiple times (as opposed to only once).
True. Pathogenic strains of bacteria tend to grow faster than non-pathogenic strains at 37°C, so researchers may set incubators at 25°C to restrict its growth.
When given an unknown bacterial sample the first step is to expand the current bacterial population. Which form of media best suites this need? Why? A. MSA agar B. LB media containing ampicillin and neomycin C. MacConkey agar D. Blood agar
A facultative anaerobe is capable of growth under aerobic (with oxygen) and anaerobic (without oxygen) conditions.
D. Blood agar. All other options (A, B and C) are all forms of selective media, meaning they may potentially inhibit the growth of the unknown sample. Although blood agar is considered a differential media, it is, most importantly, a non-selective media. Given the alternatives, this is the best option.
Universal precautions.
A lab researcher would be certain to note:
**1. Size and shape
You must determine motility before determining the Gram status. Motility requires a wet mount, while Gram staining requires heat fixing the sample. If one were to begin with the Gram stain the heat fixation process would kill the organism, making any observations regarding motility impossible. The correct approach would be to place the liquid culture on a glass slide and determine its motility status. Next, the same liquid culture can be heat fixed and Gram stained.
Streptococcus would not survive in the presence of peroxides—it is unable to breakdown peroxides (catalase negative). Left unchecked, peroxides would damage the cellular integrity of Strep causing lysis/cell death.
A. Chocolate agar B. EMB agar C. Blood agar D. Spirit Blue agar
C. Strep is often cultured on Blood agar plates to determine its hemolytic properties, which aids in the classification (and differentiation) process.
3.True or False. The Lancefield groups are used to subdivide antigenic groups of gamma-hemolytic Streptococcus.
False. The Lancefield groupings are used to subdivide beta-hemolytic Strep.
A. Group B B. Group D C. Group A D. Group C
C. Group A is the causative agent behind > 90% of all Strep infections.
A. Strep. Pharyngitis; beta B. Strep. Septicemia; gamma C. Rheumatic fever; beta D. Strep. Pharyngitis; alpha
C. Strep throat (also known as strep. Pharyngitis) can lead to Rheumatic fever if left untreated. Strep. Pharyngitis displays beta-hemolytic activity.
False. While staphylococcus can be found in ~30% of the human population, it remains non-symptomatic.
Commensal.
Bile salts. Staphylococcus species are capable of growth in the presence of bile salts.
False. There are bacterial (staph) and viral forms of conjunctivitis, both resulting in the inflammation of the conjunctiva and ‘pink eye.’
True. Although the symptoms can be treated it is only to manage the discomfort not to cure.
False. Mycobacterium show poor Gram staining and show be screened via an acid-fast stain.
False. As per the Center for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines, simply shaking someone's hand, sharing a drink or even kissing cannot spread TB.
A. Tuberculosis B. Leprosy C. Scalded-skin syndrome D. Hansen’s disease E. Bacterial conjunctivitis
B and D. Hansen’s disease is simply another name for Leprosy. Leprosy is characterized by its ability to remain dormant for up to 20 years as well as the effects observed relative to the patients skin, nerves, lungs and eyes.
True. Only the direct ingestion of the pre-formed toxin will cause disease.
Gas gangrene. The key identifier here is the robust carbohydrate fermentation, which manifests as intense gas production and swelling—both trademark conditions of gas gangrene.
C. Gas gangrene. The bacterium that produces the alpha toxin perfringolysin is aptly named Clostridium perfringens.
Legionnaires. No—legionella cannot be spread simply by direct contact between people. Legionella can only be transmitted through droplets small enough to be breathed in.
False. Pneumonic plague targets the respiratory system while bubonic targets the lymph system.
Septicemic plague is the most rare and it targets the blood system.
A. Paralysis, blindness and dementia B. Painfully swollen lymph nodes C. Cardiac and neurological complications
A. Tetanus B. Anthrax C. Gas gangrene D. Frost bite
B. Anthrax—the distinct black center at the site of infection is a hallmark of anthrax infection.
A. Diplococcic bacteria.
False. Chlyamdia is an obligate parasite and requires a host (viable cells) for its growth.
Gonorrhea
C
Syphilis
A
Chlamydia
E
D. Respiratory failure associated with lock-jaw E. Infertility and pelvic inflammatory disease. F. Sore throat, ocular discharge and fever
False. Viruses are neither eukaryotic nor prokaryotic.
A virus has (1) genomic material comprised of either DNA or RNA and (2) a capsid, a membrane-like protective structure that contains the genetic material, similar to the nucleus of a eukaryotic cell.
Capsid.
False. The overwhelming majority of animal viruses are enveloped whereas the majority of plant or bacteria- infecting viruses are not.
Smallpox (~200nm) > Paramyxovirus (100-150nm) > Poliovirus (~30nm)
True. The viral genome is never replicated before attachment and entry.
3- Uncoating: the viral capsid disassembles 5-Release: New virus particles are produced and leave the cell 4-Replication: the viral genome is the ‘blueprint’ to make copies of itself 1-Attachment: viral receptors bind to host proteins on the surface of the cell 2-Entry: the virus fuses with the host membrane and enters the cell 6-New infection: newly produced viruses that left the host cell now go on to infect new cells.
Bacteriophage; 20-sided
False. Bacteriophages have a distinct composition and structure.
1-Capsid (or Head) 2-Collar 3- Tail (sheath)
4- Base plate 5-Tail fibers
Lytic bacteriophages replicate within the host bacteria until it ruptures, whereas temporate (or lysogenic) phages primarily exist in a non-replicative state that does not kill the host cell.
Lytic phages replicate all viral proteins needed for the assembly of new virus particles whereas lysogenic phage genomes are integrated into the host genome but production of viral proteins is suppressed.
Low. As turbidity is a function of the number of intact bacterial cells present in the media, the amount of virus contained within the above tube must be low. As the lytic cycle continues more and more bacterial cells will be destroyed, effectively clearing the media.