| Abscess: |
a lump containing pus made by the body during infection |
| Agar plate: |
a petri dish containing a layer of nutrient liquid, solidified using jelly
made from seaweed |
| Allergic: |
inflammations caused by unusual sensitivity to foreign substances. |
| Allergies: |
inflammations caused by unusual sensitivity to foreign substances. |
| Amputation: |
the cutting away of part of the body (often one or more limbs) |
| Anatomy: |
the science which studies the structure of parts of the body |
| Anthrax: |
a serious disease caused by the bacterium Bacillus anthracis, which
affects cattle, sheep, goats usually causing death. People working with
sick animals or their products can suffer sores, swelling, fever, pneumonia,
blood poisoning and death |
| Anti-Semitic: |
discrimination against or persecution of Jews |
| Antitoxin: |
an antibody that specifically interacts with and neutralises toxins produced
by bacteria |
| Antibacterial: |
substance which destroys or stops the growth of bacteria. |
| Antibiotic resistance: |
the ability of micro organisisms/microbes to stop antibiotics from working |
| Antibiotic: |
a substance produced by a microbe that is used to stop the growth of other
microbes. |
| Antibodies: |
proteins made by the body that bind to foreign antigens. They help the body
combat foreign microbes |
| Antigens: |
large molecules, often found on the outside of germs which cause an immune
response |
| Antiseptic: |
a substance used on surfaces which kills microbes. |
| Bacteria: |
single cell - microorganisms which have no chlorophyll, multiply
by simple division and some of which cause diseases (germs, microbes) |
| Bacteriology: |
the study of bacteria |
| Bacterium: |
singular of bacteria |
| Biochemist: |
scientist who studies the chemistry of living things and their life processes |
| Biochemistry: |
study of the chemistry of living things |
| Biology: |
the study of living things |
| Broad-spectrum antibiotic: |
an antibiotic which acts on a wide range of types of bacteria |
| Camphor: |
an extract from the camphor laurel tree. Used in households to deter moths
in cupboards |
| Cell wall: |
outer layer of bacteria exposed to the outside environment - some bacteria
do not possess a cell wall |
| Chemotherapy: |
treatment of disease by using antibiotics or chemicals in the body. |
| Cholera: |
One of the world's most devastating diseases. Caused by a curved bacterium
which produces a toxin affecting the intestinal lining. This toxin causes
a massive loss of fluid from the body as diarrhoea. Usually food or water
infected by faecal contamination produces the nausea, diarrhoea and abdominal
cramps. The bacterium was first identified by Robert Koch in 1893 |
| Chromosome: |
the DNA containing structure which carries a cell's genes; the genetic material
of living things |
| Clinical trials: |
the testing and observation of the treatment of disease in patients (as
opposed to experimental or laboratory testing) |
| Consumption: |
a wasting disease of the lungs (an old name for pulmonary tuberculosis) |
| Controls: |
supplementary experiments set up to allow comparisons |
| Corn steep liquor: |
a byproduct of corn processing. |
| Culture: |
micro-organisms grown in laboratory media/foods |
| Darwin Charles: |
the author of the theory of evolution |
| Disinfectant: |
a substance that kills microorganisms - usually a chemical |
| DNA: |
the molecule found in cells which contains the genetic code for all our
characteristics |
| Dynamite: |
a powerful high explosive |
| Enzyme: |
a substance that speeds up chemical reactions, without itself being
used up. |
| Federation: |
the joining of all the Australian colonies into a united nation in 1901 |
| Festering Wound: |
an infected wound full of pus. |
| Folk medicine: |
traditional medicine practised without a scientific understanding of the
processes involved, usually handed down to the common people from earlier
times |
| Fungi: |
non-photosynthetic microorganisms that eat organic matter |
| Genes: |
short pieces of the DNA found in chromosomes which determine individual
characteristics. |
| Histamines: |
chemicals released from mast cells and white blood cells during an allergic
response which cause swelling, redness |
| Histology: |
the study of tissues, usually under the microscope |
| Honorary degree: |
a degree given as an honour |
| Honorary doctorate: |
a doctoral degree given as an honour |
| Hormone: |
chemical messenger found in the blood |
| Host: |
the living thing on or in which a parasite, eg bacterium grows |
| Hypothesis: |
a trial answer which can be tested, with an experiment |
| Immune response: |
the response which the body makes when invaded by a foreign substance or
microbe. |
| Infection: |
the invasion of any living organism by disease causing bacteria |
| Inflammation: |
body's response to invasion by a foreign substance often accompanied by
swelling, increased local temperature and infection. |
| Injection: |
a liquid forced into the body through a syringe and needle |
| Laboratory engineer: |
a designer and constructor of laboratory equipment |
| Laboratory: |
place fitted with scientific equipment where experiments are conducted |
| Laureate: |
a recipient of an honour or award such as the Nobel Prize |
| Lethal: |
deadly |
| Lyses: |
bursts open, usually by breaking down the wall |
| Lysozyme: |
an antibacterial enzyme occurring in body fluids and secretions that has
the ability to dissolve, or lyse, the structure of certain bacteria. |
| Mast cell: |
a white blood cell which causes inflammation durring an allergic response. |
| Memory cells: |
white blood cells left in the body after an infection that help protect
against future infection |
| Microbe: |
a microscopic organism, germ |
| Microbiologist: |
a perrson who studies microbes |
| Microscope: |
an instrument with magnifying lenses which allow for the study of objects
too small to be clearly seen by the naked eye. |
| Mould: |
furry growth on the surface of organic matter caused by fungi, especially
in the presence of dampness or decay |
| Mucus: |
the slimy secretion that moistens and protects membranes lining body cavities |
| Multiply: |
to increase in number |
| Mutation: |
a change to the DNA of an organism, which may result in new characteristics |
| Mycelium: |
a mass of tiny underground threads, as in a fungus |
| Nobel Prize: |
an annual prize given by the Nobel Foundation for distinction in physics,
chemistry, medicine, literature, economics and for the promotion of peace |
| Nontoxic: |
not poisonous |
| Nutrient agar: |
jelly to which food has been added for the growth of microbes |
| Organism: |
any animal or plant life |
| Oxford Team: |
The name given to the team of scientists Howard Florey organised at Oxford
University to develop penicillin |
| Pasteurisation: |
process in which low heat is used to kill germs in
food. |
| Pathology: |
the science of the origin and nature of disease |
| Penicillin: |
an extract from Penicillium notatum; it has a powerful antibacterial
action |
| Petri dish: |
shallow, round transparent dish, with a lid, used for growing microbes |
| Pharmacology: |
the study of drugs, their preparation, nature, uses and effects |
| Physiologists: |
scientists who study living organisms and how their parts work |
| Physiology: |
science of living organisms and how their parts work |
| Plasmid: |
small circular DNA molecule found in bacteria. Some plasmids encode one
or more antibiotic resistant genes |
| Pneumonia: |
inflammation of the lungs |
| Plagiarist: |
a person who claims another’s work or ideas as theirs |
| Protein synthesis: |
process of making protein in cells |
| Pus: |
a yellow-white substance made by the body in sores and abscesses, composed
of dead white blood cells. |
| Rhodes Scholarship: |
an annual award presented to a student from any country of the Commonwealth
or the United States to attend Oxford University for two years |
| Scientific method: |
the step by step process by which scientists investigate hypotheses using
experiments |
| Selection: |
process in which bacteria with antibiotic resistance survive and multiply |
| Semisynthetic: |
made by modification of the original penicillin |
| Serums: |
watery fluid found in the blood |
| Spores: |
seeds of mould or fungi |
| Sterile: |
free from all living microorganisms including those that cause disease |
| Streptococcus: |
spherical bacteria, occurring in chains; some species cause serious diseases |
| Therapeutic: |
cure for a disease |
| Toxic: |
poisonous |
| Transfusion: |
the transfer of blood from one person to the blood vessel of another person
of the same blood group |
| Tuberculosis: |
an infectious disease caused by the tubercle bacillus and characterised
by the formation of tubercles in body tissues, especially in the lungs (consumption.
TB) |
| Vaccine: |
a substance prepared from damaged or killed microbes, used to give immunity
to disease. |
| Variable: |
a factor which can change during an experiment |
| Virus: |
an extremely small, disease causing organism |