Microbial Pathogenesis and Virulence Factors

What is the best definition of disease?

• The presence of microbes in the body.

• The process by which microbes cause damage to a host.

• Damage to the host caused by infection, often accompanied by symptoms.

• The body’s response to bacterial invasion.

What does virulence describe?

• The rate at which a microbe reproduces in a lab setting.

• The capacity of a microorganism to cause disease.

• The genetic variability of a pathogen.

• The environmental survivability of bacteria.

Which of the following is a virulence factor?

• Bacterial motility

• Host immune response

• A toxin produced by bacteria that damages host tissues

• Antibiotic resistance genes in humans

Pathogenesis refers to:

• The body’s defense against microbial invasion.

• The process by which microbes colonize the environment.

• The mechanisms by which microbes cause disease in a host.

• The resistance of a host to bacterial infection.

What factor does NOT influence pathogenesis?

• Host immune system.

• Environmental conditions.

• Virulence factors of the microbe.

• The presence of antibiotics in the environment.