WHY STUDY MICROBIOLOGY?

Bacteriology

Virology

Mycology

Protozoology

Algology

Helminthology

Cell Biology

Molecular Biology

Biochemistry

Immunology

Pathology

Recombinant DNA Technology

Cell theory:
    • All organisms = one or more cells
    • The cell = basic unit of structure and life for all organisms
    • All cells arise from preexisting cells

 

As we bring up and name the diseases below, you should be asking yourselves these questions:

What kind of organism is involved?

What is the mode of transmission?

What are the major signs, symptoms and complications?

What are the treatments and preventive methods?

Are these diseases still significant today?

 
  • Earliest written descriptions include:
    • Epic of Gilgamesh -- Babvlon ca. 2000 BCE describes the god of pestilence.
    • Egyptians ca 2000 BCE also had a god of disease - Sekhmet the goddess of plague
    • China ca. 1300 BCE had writings in which pestilence was described
    • Thucydides of Athens (430 BCE) described a plague that wiped out about 25% of the population. (ref.: Plagues and Peoples. W.H. McNeill). Thucydides also described immunity to the disease by the survivors. The disease is unknown.
    • The Old Testament has several written descriptions of epidemics. For example, when the Assyrian, Sennacherib, tried to take Jerusalem, an epidemic of something killed 185,000 of his soldiers in one night. We don't know for sure what did it but a disease like cholera could have been the culprit.
    • Ssu-Ma Chien (145-87 BCE) described the disease dangers of southern China as. "place where the land is low and the climate humid and adult males die young." Later chinese literature describes remedies for malaria, dengue fever and schistosomiasis.
    • The decline of Rome was helped out by disease:
      • A.) Antonine Plague (165 AD) -- Probably smallpox and approximately 30% of the population died.
      • B.) A plague (probably measles) from 251 - 266 AD killed 5000 per day at its height.
      • C.) Justian plague (542 AD), probably bubonic plague, killed 10,000 per day. These epidemics helped to increase the power of the Church. Especially with promises of an afterlife. Compassion was a virtue.
    • The Renaissance in Europe followed on the heels of a major bubonic plague epidemic ( occured in three waves: 1346-1350; 1360's; 1370's) during which one third of Europe died. The plague helped to destroy the feudal system and redistributed power.
    • Infectious disease was often a biological weapon of colonizing societies. It could serve to digest peoples and cultures.
      • A.) Hernando Cortez with ca. 600 men conquered the Aztec Empire. Smallpox travelled with Cortez. Destroyed the Aztec religion also. Similar situation with Pizzaro and the Incas.
      • B.) HAWAII:
        • David Stannard in "Before the Horror" estimates a population of about 1 million at the time of Cook.
        • Nordyke and Schmitt among others estimate 200,000-400,000 people.
        • The census of 1831-1832 indicated 130,313 pure blooded Hawaiians and by annexation in 1900 only 29,799 pure blooded Hawaiians were counted. (O.A. Bushnell, "The Gifts of Civilization: Germs and Genocide in Hawai'i." pp. 266-269)
        • A number of infectious diseases played a role in the decimation, including:
    • measles
    • smallpox (epidemic of 1853)
    • cholera (ka ma‘i oku‘u)
    • tuberculosis
    • Hansen's disease
    • sexually transmitted diseases (STD's) such as gonorrhea and syphilis

 

    • Damien De Veuster was an important figure in that he instituted the humane and compassionate care and treatment of Hansen's disease patients at Kalaupapa.

 

    • C.)INFECTIOUS DISEASE IN US HISTORY:
      • Irish Potato blight precipitated the migration of the Irish to America.
      • Salem witch hunts may have been caused by eating grain (bread) contaminated with LSD. (Matossian, M.K., "Poisons of the Past").
  • Current Issues in Infectious Disease
    • EMERGING INFECTIONS: -- often due to:
      • evolutionary changes
        • influenza, antibiotic resistance
      • movement to new geographic locations
        • avian malaria in Hawai‘i, West Nile virus
      • new exposures due to ecologic changes
        • ebola, HIV, bovine spongiform encephelopathy (BSE)

Some important emerging infectious diseases:

E. coli 0157:H7

Multi Drug Resistant TB (MDRTB)

Cholera (two Hawaii cases in 1991)

AIDS

Ebola (Kikwit, Zaire; The Hot Zone, The Coming Plague)

Toxic Shock Syndrome

Legionaire's Disease

Lyme Disease

Group A Strep (necrotizing fasciitis)

Hanta Virus

Moko Disease of Bananas

Campylobacter 

West Nile Virus

Malaria

MRSA and VRE

Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy/Prions

Cyclospora

Anthrax

Smallpox

Dengue

re-immergence due to lack of vaccination: Diptheria, Bordetella, Measles

bioterrorism agents: anthrax

 

    • COMPARE THE ABOVE WITH INFECTIOUS DISEASES IN THE EARLY PART OF THIS CENTURY:

diptheria

polio

smallpox

plague

tetanus

whooping cough

measles

group a strep (scarlet fever and rheumatic fever)

tuberculosis

  • FOOD MICROBIOLOGY - [See chart on pg. 778-779, 783 Tortora et.al., 7th ed.; Also look at description of sourdough bread pg. 5, Tortora et.al., 7th ed.]

alcoholic beverages

cheeses

fermented milk

bread

poi

shoyu

kim chee

olives

sauerkraut

pickles

single cell protein (spirulina and yeast)

 

    • What is fermentation? In this case it is used to preserve/ enhance food.

  • Environmental Microbiology / Microbial Ecology
    • Recycle elements and nutrients
    • nitrogen cycle (pg. 746) - fix nitrogen from atmosphere into soil so plants can use. for what? (proteins?)
    • carbon cycle (pg. 745) - plants fix CO2 and bacteria liberate it.
    • sewage treatment
    • bioremediation - fix toxic dumps and spills
    • biological insect control - Bacillus thuringensis

  • Industrial Applications
    • antibiotics
    • vitamins
    • solvents
    • enzymes -- see the list on page 783, Tortora et.al., 7th ed
    • bioengineering -- see page 18, Tortora et.al., 7th ed. for a list products manufactured through recombinant dna techniques.

 

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