Fighting Disease

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  • Created by: naomi2310
  • Created on: 22-12-14 18:36
What is the difference between bacterium and viruses?
Bacteria are very small cells, about 1/100th the size of your body cells. They produce toxins, and damage cells. Viruses are 1/100th the size of bacteria, they cause cell damage by producing copies of themselves.
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Give three ways in which the body defends itself
Skin, Hairs, Mucus in the respiratory tract. Also platelets clot quickly to seal wounds in the body.
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What are the three ways that white blood cells work to protect the inside of your body
CABAT C- Consuming/Engulfing microbes. AB - Antibodies are produced, when the white body cells come across a foreign antigen, they produce proteins (AB) to kill the invading cells. AT- Antitoxins are produced to counteract toxins produced by bacteria
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What does a vaccination do?
Vaccinations inject small amounts of dead or inactive microorganisms which carry antigens, causing the body to produce antibodies to attack them. E.g MMR vaccine. NB. Some vaccinations ;wear off
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Name some pros and cons of vaccination
PROS - Vaccines have helped control many infectious diseases that were once common in the UK (e.g Polio, measles, smallpox). Big outbreaks (epidemics) can be prevented if a large percentage of the population is vaccinated. CONS- People can react
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What chemicals do our eyes produce to combat microorganisms?
In tears our eyes produce a chemical called lysozyme that kills bacterial microorganisms on the surface of the eye.
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What diseases does the MMR protect against?
M - Mumps, M - Measles, R - Rubella
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What do painkillers actually do? Can you give an example?
Painkillers are drugs that relieve pain (e.g Aspirin). They don't tackle the cause of the disease, they just reduce symptoms
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What do Antibiotics do?
Antibiotics kill or prevent the growth of the bacteria causing the problem without harming body cells. Different antibiotics kill different types of bacteria.
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Why can't antibiotics destroy viruses?
Viruses mutate too quickly for the antibiotics to act upon them. Also viruses reproduce using your own body cells which makes it hard to develop drugs that destroy the virus without killing body cells.
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How do bacteria become resistant to antibiotics?
Bacteria can mutate, sometimes the mutations cause them to be resistant to an antibiotic. If you have an infection, some of the bacteria may be resistant to antibiotics. When treated, only non-resistant strains of bacteria are killed.
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How do doctors slow down the rate of development of resistant strains?
Doctors need to avoid over-prescribing antibiotics.
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How can we investigate antibiotics?
We can grow antibiotics in a 'culture medium', usually agar jelly containing carbohydrates, minerals and vitamins put in a petri dish. Inoculated loops transfer microorganisms. Different antibiotics are placed on the jelly, having different effects.
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Why do inoculating loops need to be sterilised/put through a flame?
If the equipment isn't sterilised, unwanted microorganisms in the culture medium will grow and skew the results
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Why are cultures kept at 25 degrees celsius in schools?
Because at 25 degrees harmful pathogens aren't likely to grow. In industrial conditions, cultures are incubated at higher temperatures, so pathogens can grow faster.
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Card 2

Front

Give three ways in which the body defends itself

Back

Skin, Hairs, Mucus in the respiratory tract. Also platelets clot quickly to seal wounds in the body.

Card 3

Front

What are the three ways that white blood cells work to protect the inside of your body

Back

Preview of the front of card 3

Card 4

Front

What does a vaccination do?

Back

Preview of the front of card 4

Card 5

Front

Name some pros and cons of vaccination

Back

Preview of the front of card 5
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