Chapter 5 Viruses Bacteria and Your Health Key

Chapter 5: Viruses, Bacteria and Your Health Key Vocabulary

Bacteria Single celled organism, prokaryote that contains its genetic material in the cytoplasm

Binary Fission • • A form of asexual reproduction in which one cell divides to form two identical cells

A form of asexual reproduction in which one cell divides to form two identical cells

Conjugation • Process in which a unicellular organism transfers some of its genetic to another unicellular organism through a thin threadlike bridge

DECOMPOSER • Organism that breaks down chemicals from dead organisms and returns important materials to the soil and water

Pasteurization • A process of heating food to a high enough temperature to kill most of the bacteria without changing the taste of the food •

Infectious disease • An illness that can pass from one organism to another

Toxin • A poisonous substance that can harm an organism

Antibiotic • A substance or chemical that can kill bacteria without harming a person’s cells

Antibiotic Resistance • The ability of bacteria to withstand the effects of an antibiotic

Vaccine • A substance introduced into the body to stimulate the production of chemicals that destroy specific disease-causing viruses and microorganisms

Respiration • Process of breaking down food to release energy

Asexual Reproduction • Reproductive process that involves only one parent and produces offspring that are identical to the parent

Sexual Reproduction • Reproductive process that involves two parents that combine their genetic material to produce a genetically unique offspring

Host • An organism that provides a source of energy or a stable environment for a virus or other organism to live

Parasite • An organism that lives on or in a host and causes harm to the host

Pathogen • A disease-causing agent • For example: a virus, bacteria, or protists

Bacteriophage • A virus that infects bacteria •

Virus • A tiny, non-living particle that invades and then reproduces inside a living cell

Cytoplasm • Gel-like substance found inside a cell that contains the cell’s organelles

Ribosome • Site of protein synthesis • organelle that makes proteins • small, nonmembrane covered organelle found in both prokaryotes and eukaryotes

Flagellum • A long, whip-like structure that enables a bacterial cell to move

Endospore • A small, rounded, thick-walled, resting cell that forms inside a bacterial cell