Concepts
Concepts in PetriKey
Core microbiology concepts that tie the organisms and methods together.
46 reference cards
Antibody isotypes
IgG, IgM, IgA, IgE, IgD and their roles
Antigenic drift vs shift
Gradual mutation vs abrupt reassortment
Antimicrobial stewardship
Coordinated effort to optimize antimicrobial use
Aseptic technique
Practices that prevent contamination
Autoclave and moist heat
Pressurized steam sterilization
Bacterial conjugation
Gene transfer through cell-to-cell contact
Bacterial flagella
Rotary appendages for motility
Bacterial growth curve
Four phases of a batch culture
Bacteriophage
Virus that infects bacteria
Beta-lactamase
Enzyme that breaks the beta-lactam ring
Biofilm
Surface-attached microbial community
Capsule
Antiphagocytic surface structure
Colonization vs contamination vs infection
Interpretation vocabulary for coursework
Complement system
Cascade of opsonization, inflammation, and lysis
CRE
Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacterales
Efflux pump
Membrane transporter that expels drugs
Endospore
Durable bacterial survival structure
ESBL
Extended-spectrum beta-lactamase concept
Exotoxin vs endotoxin
Protein toxin versus LPS lipid A concept
Gram −Healthcare-associated infection
Infection acquired in a care setting
Herd immunity
Indirect protection at high population immunity
Horizontal gene transfer
Gene sharing between cells, not offspring
Incubation period
Exposure-to-symptom-onset interval
Innate vs adaptive immunity
Fast nonspecific defense vs slow specific memory
Lac operon
Model of inducible gene regulation
Lysogenic vs lytic cycle
Two paths a phage can take
MRSA
Methicillin-resistant S. aureus vocabulary
Normal flora / microbiota
Resident microbial community concept
Oxygen requirement classes
How bacteria relate to oxygen
Pasteurization
Mild heat to reduce pathogen load
Pili and fimbriae
Surface appendages for attachment and transfer
Plasmid
Extrachromosomal self-replicating DNA loop
Porin
Outer-membrane channel of Gram-negatives
Gram −Prions
Misfolded protein, spongiform encephalopathy
Quorum sensing
Cell-density chemical communication
Serotype and serotyping
Antigen-based strain classification
Sterilization vs disinfection
Killing all life vs reducing most microbes
Superantigen
Toxin that mass-activates T cells
Transduction
Bacteriophage-carried DNA transfer
Transformation
Uptake of free environmental DNA
Transmission routes
How pathogens move between hosts
Transposon
Mobile jumping DNA element
Vaccine types
Live, inactivated, subunit, toxoid, mRNA, vector
Vector, reservoir, and definitive host
Transmission ecology vocabulary
VRE
Vancomycin-resistant enterococci
Zoonosis
Infection transmitted from animals to humans