Explain how the use of antimicrobial agents in agriculture might contribute to increased drug resistance in bacteria causing human infections.

Explain why it is generally more difficult to treat fungal and viral infections than bacterial infections.

Define infection, infectious disease, pathogen, and virulence.

Discuss the role of the clinical microbiology laboratory in the diagnosis of infectious diseases.

List the steps that should be taken to help insure that the laboratory receives a quality specimen for culturing microorganisms.

Discuss the diagnostic techniques used to detect microorganisms in clinical specimens (i.e., microscopy, cultures, etc.)

Explain how susceptibility testing helps in the treatment of infectious diseases.

Discuss the priniciples of agglutination, precipitation, ELISA, immunoblotting, and immunofluorescent assays used in vitro to detect antibody-antigen interactions.

How is serology used to diagnose infectious diseases.

Define epidemiology, health, disease, sporadic disease, e ndemic, epidemic, outbreak, cluster, index case, pandemic,and zoonosis.

Explain how morbidiy and mortality rates are generally reported.

Compare common-source epidemic to propogated-source epidemic.

Describe an epidemic curve and how it is used in investigating an outbreak.

Explain why it is important to establish a case definition during an outbreak.

Discuss suspected and confirmed cases as they relate to an outbreak.

Define nosocomial infection.

Identify high risk patients for contracting nosocomial infections.

Discuss the characteristics that would make a microorganism an effective biological weapon.

Explain why Bacillus anthracis, variola virus, and botulism toxin are likely candidates for biological weapons.

Describe the pathogenesis of all the diseases (viral, bacterial, and parasitic) presented in class.  This includes the reservoir (source of microorganism), mode of transmission to new host, sites of infection in the host, important virulence mechanisms, and characteristic symptoms. A table may be helpful in completing this objective.

Match the microorganisms with the diseases that they cause.

Discuss the vaccine used to prevent influenza virus infection.

Discuss the significance of H and N spikes.

Identify reservoirs of influenza viruses.

Describe the difference between antigenic shift and antigenic drift of influenza viruses.

Explain the significance of avian influenza to human health.

List reasons why the World Health Organization was able to eliminate smallpox.

Define arboviruses.

Identify risk factors for severe neurological infections by West Nile virus.

Explain the function of reverse transcriptase in the replication of retroviruses.

Discuss the role of CD4 molecules in the pathogenesis of HIV.

Explain the methods HIV uses to decrease immune responses.

Discuss how TSEs are thought to move between different host species.

Describe the infectious diseases caused by S. pyogenes.

Discuss how humans develop immunity to S. pyogenes infections.

Describe the pathological sequallae to  S. pyogenes infections.

Discuss the role the capsule of S. pneumoniae plays in the pathogenesis of this microorganism.

Identify the number one cause of pneumonia.

List the diseases commonly caused by S. pneumoniae.

Describe the skin tests available for diagnosing Mycobacterium infections.

Explain what a positive PPD skin test indicates.

Discuss the role of the CMI response in M. tuberculosis infections.

Discuss the vaccine used to prevent Mycobacterium infections.

Identify the vector for Lyme disease.

Describe the clinical stages and characteristic symptoms of Lyme disease.

Discuss the clinical manifestations of gonorrhea.

Describe the microscopic morphology of Treponema.

Describe the three stages of syphilis and list the important symptom for each stage.

Discuss the manifestations of congenital syphilis.

List the commonly used methods for diagnosing syphilis.

Describe the replication cycle of Chlamydia and explain why these organisms are obligate intracellular parasites.

Discuss the pathogenesis of C. trachomatis.

List the two bacteria that most commonly cause pelvic inflammatory disease (PID).

Discuss the clinical manifestations of Staphylococcus aureus.

Compare the pathogenesis of Campylobacter and enterohemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC) .

Describe the life cycle of Cryptosporidium sp.

Describe the life cycle of malaria and identify the location of the exoerythrocytic cycle.

Distinguish between recurrence and recrudescence.

Discuss the virulence mechanisms of Plasmodium sp.

Compare and contrast malaria and babesiosis.

Describe the carbon and nitrogen cycles.

Discuss the following parts of the nitrogen cycle, nitrification, denitrification, dissimilatory reduction of nitrogen, nitrogen assimilation, nitrogen fixation, and assimilatory nitrate reduction .

Describe the Winogradsky column.

Define epilimnion, hypolimnion, and thermocline.

Describe what happens during eutrophication.

Define BOD and COD and explain how they are used.

Define oligotrophic and eutrophic bodies of water.

Describe the three steps often used in waste water treatment.

Describe the four steps often used in water purification.

Discuss methods used for determing microbiological content of water.

Explain why it is important to limit the amounts of nitrogen and phosphorus added to lakes and rivers.

Discuss the pathogenesis of red tide, ciguatera poisoning, and Pfisteria.

Identify common sources of human red tide food poisoning.