MICRO-ORGANISMS AND DISEASES

Teacher: Vanessa L. Moore www.colegioslaude.com

Types of Microbe

What we often call germs are in fact micro-organisms such as bacteria, viruses and fungi. They are much too small to be seen with the naked eye. There are millions of types of bacteria, fungi and viruses. Some of them are harmful to us, but many are not.

E. coli, a bacterium which lives inside humans.

A type of flu virus.

Athletes foot.

Bacteria

  

Bacteria are living cells. They are found in most places. They are much larger than viruses. Some bacteria cause diseases, such as food poisoning, but many are harmless. The structure of a bacterium is like this :

 They do not have a nucleus, but do have a cell wall, cell membrane, and cytoplasm.  Bacteria can reproduce quickly, but their reproduction is slowed down at lower temperatures. This is the main reason that food stays fresh longer in a fridge.

Culturing Bacteria

 

In the laboratory, bacteria can be grown, or cultured, in a Petri dish. The dish contains a culture medium for the bacteria to grow on. This has nutrients for the bacteria to feed on.

The culture medium needs to be inoculated with bacteria initially. The bacteria will then reproduce.

Culturing Bacteria - Safety

There are several safety precaution that must be taken when working with micro-organisms :
Precaution Use a sterilised Petri dish. Reason No unwanted bacteria already in the dish will grow. There is less chance that harmful bacteria will develop in the culture.

Never inoculate from areas of the body that may contain harmful bacteria, eg inside the nose or mouth. Fix lid firmly in place.

Bacteria will be unable to escape from or enter the dish. Oxygen can enter the dish, so anaerobic bacteria (which are often harmful), will not develop. At body temperature, bacteria that infect humans will grow very quickly. Any droplets of water than condense inside the container will not fall onto the culture.

Ensure the edges of the dish are not completely sealed.

Never store the culture at human body temperature (37 degrees celsius). Store the inoculated culture upside down.

Viruses

 

Viruses are very small, much smaller than bacteria. Some scientists do not classify viruses as living organisms. This is because they do not need nutrition (and as they do not eat, they do not excrete).

 Viruses do not have any of the structures found in normal cells. They have a protein coating rather than a cell membrane. They contain a strand of DNA, and to reproduce they infect a host cell with this DNA.

The virus injects DNA into the cell A virus approaches a bacterial cell

The SARS virus. (There are 1,000,000 nm in 1 mm)

The Effects Of Viruses On Cells

The viruses DNA then takes over the cell, and makes copies of itself. As this happens in many cells, millions of copies of the virus are made.

A cell is attacked by viruses (left).

So many copies are produced as the virus reproduces, that eventually the cell bursts open, and the new viruses escape to infect other cells.

Fungi

 

Yeast, penicillin and athletes foot are all members of the fungus family, as are mushrooms. Fungi grow well in warm, moist, dark conditions, such as between the toes! To avoid athletes foot, it is important to keep the feet cool and dry.

 Yeast is a type of fungus that is used in producing bread. It produces carbon dioxide as it respires, which makes the dough rise.  Yeast is also used to produce alcohol.  An important use of fungi is to produce antibiotics, such as penicillin.  Antibiotics are used to treat bacterial infections they attack and kill bacteria.

Spreading Disease

 

Diseases can spread in many different ways. These include : Person to person - Bacteria and viruses can pass from person to person by blood, saliva or by being coughed or sneezed into the air. Food borne infection Food that has not been stored correctly, or has been stored for a longer time than it ought to be, will contain lots of bacteria. Also, if an infected or unclean person prepares food then the infection will pass to the people that eat the food. Water borne infection When water is not properly treated, it can contain many sources of infection. Airborne infection Some diseases can spread through the air. A dangerous one is Legionnaires disease, which can be spread by badly maintained air conditioning systems. Insect borne infection Many diseases can be spread by insects, when they bite humans, for example the plague. (Borne means carried by).

The Body Fights Back

We are surrounded by micro-organisms, many of them harmful. They live around us, on us and in us. Even so, we rarely get ill. The body contains a number of defences that fight off the invaders.

 When you breathe in through the nose, small hairs inside it act as a filter to trap dust and some micro-organisms. Sticky mucus in the airways also traps many microbes. They are then removed from the body when you cough, sneeze or blow your nose.  If you cut yourself, platelets from the blood will clot and form a scab, stopping microbes from entering the body and stopping the blood from leaking out.  White blood cells rush to the site to attack the microbes that have entered. The white blood cells surround the micro-organisms and eat them.  They also produce antibodies chemicals which weaken or destroy the micro-organisms.  White blood cells are carried in the blood, and also in the lymph system.
White blood cells travel to the site of a wound.

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A Helping Hand

When a person has been infected with a particular microbe, the body can produce the correct antibodies very quickly if that type of microbe attacks again. The person is now immune to that disease.

 If a person is deliberately given some dead or weak microbes, then the body will learn to produce antibodies to attack that microbe, and so will be immune to that disease in the future. This is called vaccination. We say the person has been immunised against the disease.  The dead microbes that are put into the body are called vaccines.

This is the bacterium that causes tuberculosis (TB). The BCG injection you have in your upper arm is a vaccination that immunises you against TB.

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Some Definitions

Can you match the terms and their definitions? 1. Immune a. A very small organism, such as a bacterium, virus or fungus.

2. Micro-organism

b. A chemical that is produced by white blood cells, which kills or weakens micro-organisms.

3. Epidemic

c. When a disease spreads very quickly to a lot of people.

4. Vaccine

d. Safe from a particular disease.

5. Antibody

e. A substance containing dead or altered micro-organisms, which is put into the body to give you immunity from a disease in the future.

Answers:

1.d

2.a

3. c

4. e

5. b

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ACTIVITY

In this activity students, working individually, will make a project showing microbe reproduction and antibiotic action. Although many students will have been taught about this topic, being able to make their own models helps understanding and recall of the information  1. 2. 3. The following explanations should be developed in the project: How bacteria reproduce. How viruses reproduce. How antibiotics work, and how bacteria become antibiotic resistance

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