Pathogens & Infectious Diseases (College Board AP® Environmental Science): Flashcards
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Define pathogen.
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Cards in this collection (43)
Define pathogen.
A pathogen is an organism that causes disease, such as a bacterium, virus, fungus, or parasite.
Define infectious disease.
An infectious disease is an illness caused by a pathogen.
True or False?
Pathogens usually drive their host population to extinction.
False.
Diseases can devastate populations but do not usually drive the host to extinction, partly because host extinction jeopardizes the pathogen's own survival.
How does genetic diversity protect a host population from a pathogen?
Genetic diversity provides hosts with some natural resistance to the pathogen.
Pathogens can with the host, which allows the host to adapt and resist the disease.
Pathogens can co-evolve with the host, which allows the host to adapt and resist the disease.
What are the four steps by which a pathogen causes disease?
A pathogen enters the body, avoids the immune system, uses the body's resources to replicate, and then exits to spread to a new host.
What has allowed pathogens to develop drug resistance?
Overuse of antibiotics has allowed pathogens to develop drug resistance.
True or False?
Tuberculosis has stayed practically eradicated in much of the world.
False.
TB was practically eradicated in much of the world, but drug-resistant strains have reversed that trend.
Why did DDT become less effective at controlling malaria?
Malaria-carrying mosquitoes developed a natural resistance to DDT, which renewed the spread of the disease.
The increase in population and has increased the spread of diseases from one person to another.
The increase in population and urbanization has increased the spread of diseases from one person to another.
Which human behaviors increase the risk of contracting and spreading an infectious disease?
Risky behaviors include refusing vaccinations, not using condoms, sharing hypodermic needles, and refusing medical aid.
Why is global warming expected to increase the spread of infectious diseases?
Global warming makes it easier for disease-carrying vectors such as mosquitoes and ticks to live, which extends the transmission season and allows outbreaks in places that were previously too cold.
True or False?
Changes in temperature and humidity can make pathogens more virulent.
True.
These changes affect pathogen survival and replication rates, which can make pathogens more virulent.
Extreme weather-driven can contaminate water supplies, raising the risk of waterborne illnesses such as cholera.
Extreme weather-driven flooding can contaminate water supplies, raising the risk of waterborne illnesses such as cholera.
Why do low-income areas provide ideal conditions for infectious diseases to spread?
Low-income areas often lack sanitary waste disposal and have contaminated water supplies.
Which airborne diseases can spread through poor living conditions and overcrowding?
Poor living conditions and overcrowding can spread tuberculosis and pneumonia.
True or False?
Illness can make poverty worse.
True.
Job losses caused by illness worsen poverty, which in turn creates conditions that spread disease.
How can open fires or traditional stoves cause disease in poor households?
Open fires and traditional stoves can cause indoor air pollution, leading to respiratory diseases.
True or False?
Plague has been eradicated worldwide.
False.
Although plague is rare, it still occurs in rural Africa, Asia, and South America.
How is plague usually transferred to humans?
Plague is usually transferred by the bite of an infected organism, usually fleas; it can also spread through contact with contaminated fluids or tissues and by inhaling respiratory droplets.
True or False?
Plague bacteria survive well at high temperatures.
False.
Plague bacteria die quickly above 40 °C, and exposure to UV light also kills them quickly.
Define tuberculosis (TB).
Tuberculosis (TB) is a bacterial infection caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis that primarily affects the lungs.
How does tuberculosis mainly spread?
TB mainly spreads by inhaling respiratory droplets from an infected person's coughs or sneezes.
What can prevent outbreaks of plague?
Plague outbreaks can be prevented by improved cleanliness, rodent control, and disease education.
with the BCG vaccine offers some protection against TB, especially for children.
Vaccination with the BCG vaccine offers some protection against TB, especially for children.
Define malaria.
Malaria is a parasitic disease caused by Plasmodium species and transmitted through the bite of infected female Anopheles mosquitoes.
Which factors contribute to tuberculosis outbreaks?
Poor healthcare access, crowded living conditions, and weakened immune systems contribute to TB outbreaks.
True or False?
Malaria can be spread directly from person to person.
False.
Malaria cannot spread directly between people; it spreads through mosquito bites, blood transfusions from infected donors, and shared contaminated needles.
How do stagnant water and poor sanitation contribute to malaria?
Stagnant water and poor sanitation provide mosquito breeding grounds.
What strategies help to prevent malaria?
Malaria prevention strategies include mosquito nets, insecticides, and antimalarial drugs for travelers.
Which organisms can West Nile virus infect?
West Nile virus, a mosquito-borne virus, can infect humans, birds, horses, and other animals.
True or False?
West Nile virus spreads through casual human contact.
False.
West Nile virus spreads mainly through bites from infected mosquitoes, and rarely through blood transfusions, organ transplants, or from mother to baby.
Which virus causes SARS?
SARS is caused by SARS-CoV-1, the first identified strain of the SARS-related coronavirus.
How can the spread of SARS be prevented?
The spread of SARS is prevented through infection control, surveillance, and quarantine measures.
True or False?
SARS continues to cause natural cases every year.
False.
There have been no known natural cases of SARS since 2004.
How does MERS spread?
MERS spreads through respiratory droplets and contact with infected camels or contaminated surfaces.
The MERS virus is stable in cool, dry environments but is killed by and disinfectants.
The MERS virus is stable in cool, dry environments but is killed by heat and disinfectants.
Zika virus is stable in , humid environments where mosquitoes thrive.
Zika virus is stable in warm, humid environments where mosquitoes thrive.
Apart from mosquito bites, how can Zika virus spread?
Zika virus can also spread through sexual contact, blood transfusions, and from a pregnant mother to her baby (congenital transmission).
Define cholera.
Cholera is a bacterial infection caused by Vibrio cholerae.
How does cholera spread?
Cholera spreads through contaminated water or food and fecal-oral transmission (direct contact with contaminated feces).
Cholera bacteria thrive in water and areas with poor sanitation.
Cholera bacteria thrive in brackish water and areas with poor sanitation.
How can cholera be prevented?
Cholera prevention focuses on clean water access, proper sanitation, and vaccination in high-risk areas.
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