BIOL260
Study Guide for Exam #1
(Chapters 1, 3, 6, and 4)
This is provided as a guide to some of the most important concepts covered in each
chapter. You are responsible for all material covered in lecture, even if it is not represented on
this outline.
Chapter 1: Humans and the Microbial World
1. What is microbiology and why should we study it?
2. How did the following scientists contribute to microbiology: Leewenhoek, Janssen, Hooke,
Redi, Spallanzani, Virchow, Tyndall, Koch, and Pasteur.
3. What are some products made with the help of microbes?
4. What organisms are found within the category of microbiology? What characteristics make
them unique?
5. What types of organisms are found in the domain Eukarya, Bacteria, and Archaea? What is
the basis for the classification of organisms into these three domains? How are the organisms
in the Bacteria domain similar to the organisms in the Archaea domain? How are they
different?
6. What are the similarities and differences between viruses, viroids, and prions?
7. What is the nomenclature followed to name bacteria?
8. What is the average size of bacteria? What is the largest bacterium? What is the smallest?
Chapter 2: Chemistry
You will not be tested on this chapter but it is important that you understand the concepts.
Chapter 3: Microscopy and Staining
1. What is a smear ? Why do you heat fix a smear?
2. Describe the principle of simple staining. What can you determine about an organism from a
simple stain?
3. What is a differential stain? Give an example of a differential stain.
4. Describe the four steps of the Gram stain and the purpose of each step. What physical
characteristic does it differentiate? What color are Gram + and Gram - cells?
5. Describe the following staining techniques and their uses: acid-fast staining, negative
staining, and endospore staining.
6. Know the parts of a bright-field compound microscope and their function.
7. Understand the function of the following types of microscopes: phase-contrast, dark-field,
fluorescence, transmission electron, and scanning electron. Be able to give an example of
when you would use each kind of microscope.
8. Understand the differences between a prokaryotic cell and a eukaryotic cell.
9. Know the various shapes of bacteria and the typical cell groupings.
10. Describe the following cell structures and their function: glycocalyx (differentiate between a
capsule and a slime layer), flagella, pili, fimbriae, cell wall (know the complete
composition), cytoplasmic membrane, chromosome, plasmid, periplasm, cytoplasm,
nucleoid, ribosomes, storage granule, endospore.
Be able to provide an example of an organism that contains a structure above using the
genus and species name.
11. Know the structures of Gram-positive and Gram-negative cell walls.
12. Understand how lysozyme effects peptidoglycan?
13 Understand how penicillin effects peptidoglycan?
14. What is the function of endospores? How are they made?What are the steps in the synthesis
of a spore? Name a bacterial genus that produces endospores.
15. Understand the different ways to transport material across a cytoplasmic membrane.
Understand the different ways bacteria move material across a membrane such as facilitated
diffusion and active transport mechanisms (transport systems that use proton motive force,
transport systems that use ATP, and efflux pumps).
16. What are the functions of the bacterial cytoplasmic membrane?
17. Review the parts of the eukaryotic cell. Which parts are thought to have evolved from
bacteria?
Chapter 6: Microbial Metabolism
1. Define metabolism and describe the difference between anabolism and catabolism.
2. Define enzymes and their characteristics.
4. Understand the factors that influence enzyme activity: temperature, pH, substrate
concentration, and inhibitors.
5. What are cofactors? What are coenzymes?
6. Understand competitive and noncompetitive inhibition. Know an example of each.
7. Understand the following terms and processes: glycolysis, fermentation, Tricarboxylic Acid
cycle, anaerobic and aerobic respiration, oxidation/reduction reactions, electron transport
chain, oxidative phosphorylation, and substrate level phosphorylation.
8. For the major pathways discussed, understand what is the starting material, what is made in
the process, and what is the final product.
9. What is the difference between aerobic respiration and fermentation? How do they differ in
the amount of energy (ATP) produced? What is the final electron acceptor in each
pathway?
10. What is the final end product from fermentation of glucose by E. coli? By lactic acid
bacteria? By Saccharomyces?
11. What is the difference between aerobic respiration and anaerobic respiration? Do they differ
in the amount of energy (ATP) produced? What is the final electron acceptor in each
pathway?
12. What is unique with the Pentose Phosphate Pathway?
Chapter 4: Prokaryotic Growth
1. Understand what is meant by generation time, and binary fission. Do all organisms have the
same generation time? Be able to use the formula on p. 83 to calculate the number of cells in
a population after a given amount of time.
2. What is a biofilm? What are some medical applications/examples of biofilms? Are all
biofilms damaging?
3. What is the definition of a pure culture? What are some techniques used to determine if a
sample is pure? How are stock cultures maintained?
4. Explain how physical conditions such as temperature, pH, and oxygen can influence
bacterial growth.
5. What is the optimum temperature for growth of psychrophiles, psychrotrophs, mesophiles,
and thermophiles?
6. What are the basic chemical requirements for bacterial growth?
7. What is the difference between chemically defined media and complex media?
8. What are selective media? What are differential media? Know some examples of each.
9. Know the definitions of the following terms: photoautotroph. photoheterotroph,
chemoautotroph, and chemoheterotroph
10. Be able to look at a recipe and determine what kind of microbe would grow on it, for
example, chemoheterotroph, photoautotroph, etc.
11. Be able to recognize a bacterial growth curve and identify the phases of growth.
Which growth phase is best used for experimentation and why? When are primary
metabolites produced? Secondary metabolites?
12. Describe the following methods to determine the number of bacteria
-Direct cell counts
-Viable Cell Counts
-Measuring Biomass
-Detecting Cell Products
Which methods measure living cells and which measures both living and dead cells?
13. What is a chemostat?