Questions and Answers
What does taxonomy study?
What are taxa?
Groups of organisms based on evolutionary relatedness
What is systematics (phylogeny)?
A discipline focused on classifying organisms and determining their evolutionary relationships
What is Eukarya?
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What is Bacteria?
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What characterizes Archaea?
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What are the three domains of life?
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What are the three major groups of Archaea?
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What is a molecular clock?
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What is a genus?
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What is a specific epithet?
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What is binomial nomenclature?
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What is an eukaryotic species?
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What is a family in biological classification?
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What is an order in taxonomy?
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What is a class in biological classification?
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What is phylum in taxonomy?
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What is a kingdom in biological classification?
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What is a domain?
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What is a prokaryotic species?
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What is a clone?
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What is a strain in biological classification?
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What is protista?
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What are clades?
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What is Fungi?
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What does Plantae refer to?
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What is Animalia?
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What is a viral species?
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What are rapid identification methods?
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What is numerical identification?
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What is serology?
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What is antiserum?
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What is a slide agglutination test?
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What is serological testing?
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What are serotypes?
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What are serovars?
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Study Notes
Taxonomy and Classification
- Taxonomy involves the study of scientific classification principles.
- Taxa are groups of organisms classified based on evolutionary relationships.
- Systematics, or phylogeny, focuses on classifying organisms and their evolutionary connections.
Domains of Life
- Three primary domains: Eukarya, Bacteria, Archaea.
- Eukarya includes organisms with nuclei: protists, plants, fungi, animals.
- Bacteria consists of unicellular prokaryotes with peptidoglycan cell walls.
- Archaea are unicellular prokaryotes without peptidoglycan in their walls.
Archaea Subgroups
- Major groups of Archaea: methanogens, extreme halophiles, hyperthermophiles.
Taxonomic Hierarchy
- The hierarchy consists of several categories: domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus, species.
- Genus groups one or more species; specific epithet is the second part of a scientific name, italicized and not capitalized.
- Binomial nomenclature uses two words for scientific names: genus followed by species.
Prokaryotic Characteristics
- Prokaryotic species are populations of similar unicellular organisms.
- Clones are genetically identical cells from a single original cell.
- Strains within prokaryotic species exhibit variations in characteristics.
Eukaryotic Kingdoms
- Protista is a kingdom of eukaryotes not classified as plants, animals, or fungi.
- Fungi obtain nutrients by decomposing organic material.
- Plantae are multicellular, green organisms using sunlight for photosynthesis, characterized by cellulose-based cell walls.
- Animalia consists of complex, multicellular organisms that lack cell walls and respond quickly to their environment.
Viruses and Identification Techniques
- Viral species are populations of viruses with similar traits in a specific ecological niche.
- Rapid identification methods, like Enterotube II and API, allow simultaneous biochemical tests for significant bacteria.
- Numerical identification assigns values to aid microorganism identification.
Serological Methods
- Serology studies blood serum and antibody-antigen interactions.
- Antiserum contains antibodies for specific pathogens.
- Slide agglutination tests mix antibodies with antigens on slides to observe agglutination.
- Serological testing analyzes antigen-antibody reactions in body fluids.
- Serotypes are antigenic variants identified by a singular typing serum.
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Test your knowledge on the taxonomy and systematics of microorganisms with these flashcards. Learn key terms and their definitions related to the classification of organisms, including domains and evolutionary relationships.