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Types of Microbes

Prions
Prions (proteinaceous infectious particles) are infectious proteins that are responsible for a class of diseases known as the Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy (TSEs), which are neurodegenerative diseases including Mad Cow Disease and kuru. Prions destroy the tissue of the nervous system, forming holes in the brain and nervous systems. Prion diseases all involve modification of the prion protein, a normal part of mammalian cells. They are also all fatal and rapidly progressive. Like viruses, prions cannot replicate on their own and rely on other organisms. Unlike other microbes, prions do not contain nucleic acids. Prions are thought to have originated from ZIP proteins.

Viruses
Viruses are microorganisms much smaller than bacteria that invade other cells in order to replicate. Viruses are responsible for a variety of diseases, such as chicken pox. The origin of viruses is unclear; some may have come from plasmids (pieces of DNA that can travel between cells) or transposons (pieces of DNA that can move themselves to different places in a cell's genome) while others may have evolved from bacteria. Some viruses, known as bacteriophages, infect bacteria. Their appearance is often compared to that of an alien landing pod. Typically, their genome is composed of DNA rather than the RNA of retroviruses. Other viruses, most famously Sputnik, infect other viruses. These are known as virophages. Viruses can cause either lytic or lysogenic infections. In a lytic infection, the virus injects its genome into the host cell, which cannot differentiate between viral DNA and its own DNA. The cell begins to make mRNA from the viral DNA, which is then made into viral proteins that destroy the cell's DNA. When the cell eventually shuts down, the virus continues to use the cell to replicate. Enough viruses are made to cause the cell to burst, or lyse. Hundreds or thousands of released viruses then go on to infect other cells. In a lysogenic infection, a virus integrates its DNA into the host cell's DNA. This viral DNA is known as a prophage. The prophage remains dormant in the cell's DNA for several generations before becoming active, leaving the cell's DNA, and directing the synthesis of new viral proteins. HPV, which causes AIDS, is a lysogenic virus.

Cellular Microbes
Cellular microbes are microbes that are made up of cells. There are two main types of cellular microbes; prokaryotes and eukaryotes. Prokaryotes differ from eukaryotes with their lack of nuclei and membrane bound organelles.

Bacteria
Bacteria are single-celled, prokaryotic microorganisms. Some bacteria are beneficial to humans while others are pathogenic, but a majority of bacteria are harmless to humans. Pathogenic bacteria are responsible for a variety of diseases including strep throat and tetanus. Bacteria come in 3 shapes: coccus (circular), bacillus(rod-shaped), and spirillum (spirally). Bacteria originate from the single-celled organisms that were the first to inhabit the Earth.

Bacteria may be photoautotrophic, utilizing photosynthesis to produce food and oxygen. They may also be chemoautotrophic, making food using the energy from chemical reactions - these bacteria serve an important role in the nitrogen and sulfur cycles. Motile bacteria may utilize rotating flagella to move, or they may secrete slime to slide around like a slug. Bacteria may also be nonmotile.

Archaea
Archaea are a group of single-celled microorganisms that were previously thought to be bacteria. Archaea are prokaryotes. Their origin and potential for causing disease are currently unclear; however, Archaea are thought to be ancestors of eukaryotes or very close descendants because of their many similarities, including genes and inclusion of enzymes in translation and transcription processes. Unlike bacteria, no known species of Archaea form spores. Spore: Typically one-celled, reproductive unit capable of giving rise to a new individual without sexual fusion. & A haploid reproductive cell that gives rise to a gametophyte. Archaea are capable of living in extreme habitats and anaerobic environments. They are extremely tolerant to heat, acid, and toxic gases. Archaea are variously involved in the carbon and nitrogen cycles, assist in digestion, and can be used in sewage treatment.

Fungi
Fungi are eukaryotic organisms that can be single-celled or multi-celled. Fungi have cell walls composed of chitin, unlike the cellulose walls of plants. Fungi are heterotrophic and do not have chloroplasts like photoautotrophs. They grow best in slightly acidic environments and can grow in areas of low moisture. Technically, fungi are more closely related to animals than they are to plants and likely shared a common ancestor with animals. Fungi are responsible for diseases such as athlete's foot. Bakers yeast (a fungus) is used for bread and brewing. Some fungi are used for antibiotics and others are important decomposers in the ecosystem.

Protists
Protists are eukaryotic but do not have specialized tissues. Algal protists are similar to plants and can go through photosynthesis, but do not have cuticles that prevent water loss. As a result algal protists must live in water. Animal like protists are called protozoa and are eukaryotic and heterotrophic. These protists consume other protists and bacteria for food. Some have two nuclei: the macronucleus (bigger) and the micronucleus (smaller). Many move with cilia, flagella, or pseudopodia (in the case of amoebae). They also have complex life cycles. For example, they may exist in a trophozoite: (A growing stage in the life cycle of some sporozoan parasites, when they are absorbing nutrients from the host.). They can also change into a dormant form known as a cyst, which can help in reproduction.

Endosymbiotic Theory
Championed by Lynn Margulis in the 1960s, the endosymbiotic theory holds that mitochondria and chloroplasts in eukaryotic cells originated from proteobacteria and cyanobacteria, respectively. Evidence for this theory includes that mitochondria and chloroplasts divide through binary fission, not mitosis like the rest of the cell. These organelles, which are the same size as bacteria, also have their own different, circular DNA and two membranes. Chloroplasts in some algae have cell walls of peptidoglycan.

Gram Staining
Gram staining is a type of differential staining, meaning it separates bacteria into two different groups (Gram-positive and Gram-negative) based on their reactions to the procedure. Because of widely varying responses, Gram staining cannot be performed on archaea. The first step in the procedure is to heat fix the bacteria; then, those bacteria are stained with crystal violet, the primary stain, for one minute. In an aqueous solution, crystal violet disassociates into CV and CL ions, which penetrate through the cell wall. CV ions react with negatively charged particles in bacterial cells and stain them purple. The third step is to apply iodine as a mordant, or trapping agent, for one minute. It reacts with the crystal violet and prevents removal of the purple stain. After the remaining iodine is rinsed away, alcohol decolorizer (sometimes acetone) is added until the primary stain is removed in Gram-negative bacteria because alcohol dissolves the outer membrane. In contrast, Gram-positive bacteria retain the primary stain because it becomes trapped in their thick, multi-layered walls of peptidoglycan. The final step is to apply safranin (sometimes basic fuchsin) as a counterstain. This gives the Gram-negative bacteria their final red-pink color.

Characteristics of Gram-Positive Bacteria


Typically, Gram-positive bacteria produce exotoxins and are susceptible to phenol disinfectants. They retain the blue-purple color of crystal violet in Gram staining because of their thicker walls of peptidoglycan. Unlike Gram-negative bacteria, they lack the periplasmic space between the cytoplasm and outer membranes because Gram-positive bacteria lack an outer membrane. Certain types of Gram-positive bacilli, most importantly Lactobacilli (used in milk and dairy products), cannot form spores.

Characteristics of Gram-Negative Bacteria


Gram-negative bacteria have thinner walls of peptidoglycan and two membranes and periplasmic space between them. Because of the safranin counterstain, they become red-pink after Gram staining. There are many Gram-negative aerobic (oxygen-using) bacteria.

Viral Diseases
Viral diseases are immune to antibiotics; therefore, vaccines are typically the best form of prevention. y AIDS (caused by the HIV virus) y Chicken Pox and Shingles (caused by the varicella zoster virus) y Common cold (often caused by the rhinovirus but can also be caused by corona viruses and adenoviruses) y Dengue fever (caused by the mosquito-borne dengue virus) y Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever (caused by the Ebola virus) y Hepatitis y Herpes (caused by the herpes simplex virus type 1 and type 2) y Influenza (caused by viruses of the family Orthomyxoviridae) y Measles (caused by the morbillivirus) y Mumps (caused by the mumps virus) y Mononucleosis, also known as mono or glandular fever (caused by the Epstein-Barr virus) y Polio (caused by the poliovirus) y Rabies (caused by the rabies virus)

Bacterial Diseases
Bacterial diseases may often be treated by antibiotics. y Anthrax y Botulism y Cholera y Dental Caries (tooth decay) y Gonorrhea y Legionnaire's Disease y Lyme Disease y MRSA y Peptic Ulcer Disease y Pertussis (whooping cough) y Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever y Rubella y Strep throat y Syphilis y Tetanus y Tuberculosis

Fungal Diseases
The technical term for a fungal disease is a mycosis. y Athlete's foot y Histoplasmosis y Ringworm y Thrush

Protozoan Diseases
y y y y y

Malaria Paralytic Shellfish Poisoning Estuary Associated Syndrome Giardiasis Cryptosporidiosis

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