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Flashcards · Biology · Communicable Diseases

Pathogens and the Spread of Disease

16 cards

  1. What is a pathogen?

    A microorganism that causes infectious disease.

  2. Name the four types of pathogen.

    Viruses, bacteria, protists and fungi.

  3. Where do viruses reproduce?

    Inside the cells of a living host.

  4. What do bacteria produce that damages tissues?

    Toxins (poisons).

  5. How do viruses damage the body?

    They live and reproduce inside cells, which causes cell damage.

  6. Can pathogens infect plants as well as animals?

    Yes.

  7. Name three ways pathogens spread.

    Direct contact, by water and by air.

  8. How does a cough spread disease?

    It sends out droplets containing pathogens, which other people breathe in.

  9. What is a vector?

    An organism that carries a pathogen from one host to another.

  10. Name one example of a vector.

    The mosquito that carries malaria.

  11. Name one way to stop a disease spreading by hands.

    Wash hands with soap and water.

  12. Why is isolating a patient useful?

    It stops them passing the pathogen to other people.

  13. How can destroying vectors reduce disease?

    It breaks the link between infected and healthy hosts.

  14. How does vaccination reduce the spread of disease?

    It makes people immune, so they cannot catch or pass on the disease.

  15. Why do bacteria cause illness so quickly?

    They reproduce rapidly inside the body, so their numbers rise fast.

  16. Four panels with drawings of pathogens and no labels. Name the three types of pathogen shown, and a fourth that is missing. The same four pathogens with their names and descriptions.

    Virus (reproduces inside cells), bacterium (divides rapidly and makes toxins), protist (single-celled eukaryote) and fungus (grows as threads).