Microbiology and Medical Microbiology Quiz

Microbiology and Medical Microbiology

• Microbiology studies microscopic organisms, unicellular or multicellular.
• Medical microbiology focuses on infectious diseases impacting human health globally and in Egypt.
• Studying medical microbiology is crucial for understanding infectious diseases (bacterial, viral, fungal), laboratory diagnosis, treatment strategies (antibiotics, antivirals, antifungals), and infection control.
• Knowledge of medical microbiology is essential for pharmacists in various settings, including appropriate medication prescribing and patient advice.

Medically Important Microorganisms

• Key concepts to learn include microscopy/shape, culture characteristics, biochemical activities, antigenic characteristics, pathogenesis and virulence, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention.
• The course will cover bacteria, viruses, fungi, and protozoa.

Course Outline: Bacteriology

• Gram-Positive Bacteria: Cocci (Staphylococcus, Streptococcus); Rods (Corynebacterium diphtheria, Listeria monocytogenes, Bacillus anthracis, Bacillus cereus, Clostridium species); Acid-Fast Bacteria (Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Mycobacterium leprae); Spirochetes (Treponema, Borrelia, Leptospira).
• Gram-Negative Bacteria: Cocci (Neisseria gonorrhoeae, Neisseria meningitides); Rods (Enterobacteriaceae family, Pseudomonas, Bordetella, Brucella, Francisella, Legionella, Pasteurella, Haemophilus, Vibrio, Campylobacter, Helicobacter, Bacteroids).
• Rickettsia, Chlamydiae, Mycoplasma are also covered.

Course Outline: Mycology (Fungi)

• Details not specified in provided text.

Course Outline: Virology

• Introduction to virology: structure, replication, and methods of viral culture.
• DNA viruses: Herpes, Varicella Zoster, Epstein Barr, Cytomegalo, Molluscum Contagiosum, Smallpox, Papilloma viruses, Adenovirus.
• RNA viruses: Polio, Rhino, Influenza, Parainfluenza, Respiratory Syncytial, Mumps, Measles, German Measles, Arboviruses, Corona, Rota, Rabies, HIV.
• Hepatitis viruses (A, B, C, D, E).

Practical Medical Microbiology

• Practical sessions will cover microscopy/shape, culture characteristics, biochemical activities, antigenic characteristics, pathogenesis and virulence, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention. Methods for identifying and dealing with microorganisms will be taught. O-Ag, H-Ag, AH-Ag, and BH-Ag will be studied.

Infection, Immunity, Pathogenesis, and Virulence

• Infection: Invasion of the body by a disease-causing agent.
• Immunity: Host tissue's resistance to infectious agents and their products.
• Pathogenicity: Microorganism's ability to cause disease.
• Pathogenesis: Process of disease development.
• Virulence: Measure of a pathogen's ability to infect or damage a host; LD50 (lethal dose 50) is used to quantify virulence.
• Relationships between bacteria and the host: Commensalism (host unharmed), Symbiosis (host benefits), Parasitism (host harmed), Opportunistic infections (normally harmless bacteria becoming pathogenic due to compromised immunity).
• Resident microflora (microbiota): Naturally colonizing bacteria found on body surfaces and in the gastrointestinal, urogenital, and oropharyngeal tracts.

Stages of Bacterial Pathogenesis

• Transmission (direct or indirect).
• Entry (mucous membranes, skin, parenteral route). Preferred portals of entry are crucial for disease development.
• Attachment.
• Evasion of host defenses.
• Multiplication/Colonization.
• Damage to the host (direct damage, nutrient use, invasion, toxins, enzymes).
• Release and spread.

Transmission of Bacteria

• Direct spread: Direct contact, droplet infection, soil contact, transplacental transmission.
• Indirect spread: Airborne, fomite-borne, vehicle-borne, vector-borne (biological or mechanical).

Entry of Pathogens

• Portals of entry: mucous membranes (respiratory, gastrointestinal, genitourinary, conjunctiva), skin, parenteral route.

Attachment and Evasion of Host Defenses

• Surface-associated virulence factors: Fimbriae/pili (adhesion, antiphagocytic), flagella/axial filaments (chemotaxis, penetration), capsule/slime layer (adhesion, protection against phagocytosis), lipopolysaccharides (inflammatory mediators), outer membrane proteins (adhesion, iron sequestration), spores.

Multiplication/Colonization

• Ability to adhere, establish, and multiply to form colonies, protecting against body secretions or peristaltic movement.

Damage to the Host

• Direct damage: Pathogens using host cells for nutrients and producing waste products.
• Using host's nutrients: Siderophores binding iron away from host proteins.
• Invasion: Tissue invasion (directly or via lymphatic/bloodstream), intracellular invasion (phagocytes or epithelial cells).
• Toxins: Endotoxins (LPS, part of cell wall, Gram-negative, less toxic) and Exotoxins (proteins, extracellular, Gram-positive and Gram-negative, more toxic).
• Enzymes: Exoenzymes like coagulases (clot fibrin), kinases (break down fibrin), collagenases, and keratinases.

Release and Spread

• Successful pathogens are released from the host to infect others.

Manifestations of Disease

• Symptoms: Subjective manifestations (pain, headache, etc.).
• Signs: Objective evidence (swelling, rash, etc.).
• Syndrome: Collection of symptoms and signs characterizing a disease.