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Question 1

Geologic time scale

Answer 1

Division of earth’s history into eons, periods, epochs, and ages based on the rock record of the earth.

Question 2

Microbiome

Answer 2

The community of microorganisms (such as fungi, bacteria, and viruses) that exists within a particular environment. In humans, these groups are dynamic & change in response to a host of environmental factors, such as exercise, diet, medication, or other exposures.

Question 3

Cytokine storm

Answer 3

Cytokine storm: A severe immune reaction in which the body releases too many cytokines into the blood too quickly. Can occur as a result of an infection, autoimmune condition, or other disease. Signs and symptoms include: high fever, inflammation, and severe fatigue and nausea. Can be life threatening.

Question 4

Anthropocene

Answer 4

Anthropocene: A proposed current geological epoch, in which human activities have a powerful effect on the global environment.

Question 5

Antonie van Leeuwenhoek

Answer 5

Antonie van Leeuwenhoek: A dutch microbiologist and microscopist in the 17th century. Commonly known as “the father of microbiology.”

Question 6

Robert Koch:

Answer 6

German physician and microbiologist in the 19th century known for discovering the causes of many deadly infectious diseases—one of the foremost founders of bacteriology.

Question 7

Koch’s postulates:

Answer 7

Four criteria designed to establish a causal relationship between a microbe and a disease.

Question 8

Bobtail Squid:

Answer 8

Native to Hawaii and known for its symbiotic relationship with glowing bacteria.

Question 9

Anthrax (in humans):

Answer 9

The disease that can occur in humans through contact with infected herbivores, tissue from infected animals, or high concentrations of anthrax spores. Symptoms include lesions on the skin or in the lungs—often fatal.

Question 10

Wolbachia:

Answer 10

A bacteria common in insects. Known for its ability to prevent mosquito-borne diseases like Dengue Fever and Zika virus.

Question 11

Germ free mice:

Answer 11

Mice engineered in a lab to be completely sterile—not colonized by bacteria or other microorganisms.

Question 12

Bacterial Colonization:

Answer 12

The establishment and growth of bacterial strains inside of or on a host without causing overt disease.

Question 13

Bacterial Adaptation:

Answer 13

The rapid evolution of bacteria within a system due to internal/external pressure.

Question 14

Nipah Virus:

Answer 14

A zoonotic bat-borne disease that can be transmitted to humans—very high mortality rate.

Question 15

Hendra Virus:

Answer 15

A zoonotic virus found solely in Australia. Linked to outbreaks in domestic horses and severe cases in humans.

Question 16

SARS:

Answer 16

Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome is a contagious and sometimes fatal respiratory illness caused by a coronavirus.

Question 17

Ebola:

Answer 17

A virus that causes severe bleeding, organ failure, and can lead to death.

Question 18

Rene Dubos:

Answer 18

French-born American microbiologist whose research led to the discovery of major antibiotics.

Question 19

Medical model of infectious disease:

Answer 19

Focuses on an individual patient and host-pathogen interaction within a single host.

Question 20

Ecological model of infectious disease:

Answer 20

Focuses on the broader environment and how factors like climate, land use, host populations, and pathogen communities influence disease spread and emergence.

Question 21

Virulence:

Answer 21

A pathogen’s or microorganism’s ability to cause damage to a host.

Question 22

Model of transmission:

Answer 22

How an infectious agent, like a virus or bacteria, moves from one host to another.

Question 23

Direct transmission:

Answer 23

immediate transfer of the agent through physical contact

Question 24

Indirect transmission

Answer 24

uses a contaminated intermediary object or vector

Question 25

Health:

Answer 25

The condition of an organism in which it performs its vital functions normally and properly.

Question 26

Disease:

Answer 26

An abnormal condition that affects the structure or function of part or all of the body and is usually associated with specific signs and functions.

Question 27

Zoonotic spillover:

Answer 27

The transmission of pathogens from wild animals to humans. Most human infectious diseases are derived from pathogens that originally circulated in non-human animal species.

Question 28

Armelagos triangle:

Answer 28

The evolutionary model in which the three corners are environment, insult, and host response. Environment: Physical and social; impacts the way people get infected with things Insult: A thing that requires an adaptation as a host—internal and external Internal: pathogens External: dog bite, car crash, etc. Host response: The adaptation; physiological and behavioral; modifies behavior

Question 29

Pathogen:

Answer 29

An infectious microorganism or agent, such as a virus, bacterium, or fungus.

Question 30

Symbiosis

Answer 30

A close, prolonged relationship between two or more organisms of different species, regardless of benefit to the members.

Question 31

Symbiont:

Answer 31

An organism that lives in a symbiotic relationship

Question 32

Adaptation:

Answer 32

The process of change that an organism undergoes to be better suited to its environment.

Question 33

Predator-prey relationships:

Answer 33

An ecological interaction where one organism, the predator, hunts and eats another organism, the prey.

Question 34

Antigen:

Answer 34

Any substance foreign to the body that evokes an immune response either alone or after forming a complex with a larger molecule and that is capable of binding with a product of the immune response.

Question 35

Antibody:

Answer 35

A large “y” shaped protein which is used by the immune system to identify and neutralize antigens such as bacteria and viruses.

Question 36

Immune reaction:

Answer 36

The body’s ability to stay safe by protecting against harmful agents.

Question 37

“R” factor:

Answer 37

A group of genes present in some bacteria that provide a basis for resistance to antibiotics and can be transferred from cell to cell by conjugation.

Question 38

Endemic

Answer 38

A disease that is consistently present within a particular geographic area or population, maintaining a relatively constant level or predictable prevalence.

Question 39

Epidemic

Answer 39

An occurrence of a disease or disorder in a population at a frequency higher than expected in a given time period.

Question 40

Vector

Answer 40

An organism or inanimate object that carries and transmits a pathogen from an infected source to a susceptible host.

Question 41

Doctrine of specific etiology:

Answer 41

Foundational principle of modern medicine. Posits that each disease has a distinct and specific cause.

Question 42

Natural selection:

Answer 42

Process that results in the adaptation of an organism to its environment by means of selectively reproducing changes in its genotype, or genetic constitution.

Question 43

Reservoir species:

Answer 43

A living organism that harbors an infectious disease-causing pathogen and can transmit it to other hosts, often without showing symptoms themselves.

Question 44

Amplifier species:

Answer 44

A host species that significantly increases the abundance and spread of a pathogen, thereby increasing the overall transmission risk to other hosts, including humans.

Question 45

Hygiene hypothesis:

Answer 45

Theory that proposes that increased cleanliness and reduced exposure to microbes during early childhood may contribute to the development of allergic diseases.

Question 46

Latency:

Answer 46

How long it takes for you to develop symptoms after exposure to an infectious disease.

Question 47

Stealth infection:

Answer 47

A hidden or undetectable infection that persists in the body without causing obvious symptoms.

Question 48

Host:

Answer 48

The living organism that harbors and is affected by a disease.

Question 49

Vaccine

Answer 49

A biological preparation that provides active acquired immunity to a particular infectious or malignant disease.