Unit 4 Study Guide         Taxonomy and Diversity of Microbes

Chapter Objectives 27

1. List unique characteristics that distinguish archaea from bacteria
2. Describe the 3-domain system of classification and explain how it differs from previous systems
3. Using a diagram or micrograph, distinguish among the 3 most common shapes of prokaryotes
4. Describe the structure and functions of prokaryotic cell walls
5. Distinguish between the structure and staining properties of gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria
6. Explain why disease-causing gram-negative bacterial species are generally more pathogenic than disease-causing gram-positive bacteria
7. Describe 3 mechanisms motile bacteria use to move
8. Explain how prokaryotic flagella work and why they are not considered to be homologous to eukaryotic flagella
9. Indicate where photosynthesis and cellular respiration take place in prokaryotic cells
10. Explain how organization of the prokaryotic genome differs from that in eukaryotic cells
11. Explain what is meant by geometric growth
12. List the sources of genetic variation in prokaryotes and indicate which one is the major source
13. Distinguish between autotrophs and heterotrophs
14. Describe 4 modes of bacterial nutrition and give examples of each
15. Distinguish among obligate aerobes, facultative anaerobes, and obligate anaerobes
16. Describe, with supporting evidence, plausible scenarios for the evolution of metabolic diversity of prokaryotes
17. Explain how molecular systematics has been used in developing a classification of prokaryotes
18. List the 3 main groups of archaea, describe distinguishing features among the groups, and give examples of each
19. List the major groups of bacteria, describe their mode of nutrition, some characteristic features, and representative examples
20. Explain how endospores are formed and who endospore-forming bacteria are important to the food-canning industry
21. Explain how the presence of E. coli in public water supplies can be used as an indicator of water quality
22. State which organism is responsible for the most common sexually transmitted disease in the United States
23. Describe how mycoplasmas are unique from other prokaryotes
24. Explain why all life on earth depends upon the metabolic diversity of prokaryotes
25. Distinguish among mutualism, commensalism, and parasitism
26. List Koch's postulates tat are used to substantiate a specific pathogen as the cause of a disease
27. Distinguish between exotoxins and endotoxins
28. Describe how humans exploit the metabolic diversity of prokaryotes for scientific and commercial purposes
29. Describe how Streptomyces can be used commercially

Chapter Objectives 28

1. List the characteristics of protists
2. Briefly summarize and compare the 2 major models of eukaryotic origins
1. autogenous hypothesis
2. endosymbiotic hypothesis
3. Provide 3 lines of evidence for the endosymbiotic hypothesis
4. Explain why some critics are skeptical about the bacterial origins for chloroplasts and mitochondria
5. Explain why modern biologists recommend expanding the original boundaries of the Kingdom Protista
6. Explain what is meant by the statement: Kingdom Protista is a polyphyletic group
7. List 5 candidate kingdoms of Protists and describe a major feature of each
8. Describe amoeboid movement
9. Outline the life cycle of Plasmodium
10. Indicate the organism that causes of African sleeping sickness and explain how it is spread and why it is difficult to control
11. Describe the function of contractile vacuoles in freshwater ciliates
12. Distinguish between macronuclei and micronuclei
13. Use diagrams to describe conjugation in Paramecium caudatum
14. Explain how accessory pigments can be used to classify algae and determine phylogenetic relationships among divisions
15. Distinguish among the following algal groups based upon pigments, cell wall components, storage products, reproduction, number and position of flaglla, and habitat
1. Dinoflagellata
2. Bacillariophyta
3. Chrysophyta
4. Phaeophyta
5. Rhodophyta
6. Chlorophyta
16. Describe 3 possible evolutionary trends that led to multicellularity in the Chlorophyta
17. Outline the life cycles of Chlamydomonas, Ulva, and Laminaria and indicate whether the stages are haploid or diploid
18. Distinguish between
1. isogamy and oogamy
2. sporophyte and gametophyte
3. isomorphic and heteromorphic generations
19. Compare life cycles of plasmodial and cellular slime molds and describe the major differences between them
20. Provide evidence that the oomycetes are not closely related to fungi
21. Give examples of oomycetes and describe their economic importance
Explain the most widely accepted hypothesis for the evolution of multicellularity

Chapter Objectives 31

1. List the characteristics that distinguish fungi from organisms in other kingdoms
2. Explain how fungi acquire nutrients
3. Explain how mon-motile fungi seek new food sources and how they disperse
4. Describe the basic body plan of a fungus
5. Distinguish between septate and aseptate (coenocytic) fungi
6. Describe some advantages of the dikaryotic state
7. Distinguish among fungi and list some common examples of each
8. Describe asexual and sexual reproduction in Zygomycophyta, Ascomycophyta, and Basidiomycophyta and the sexual structures that characterize each group
9. Explain the difference between conidia and ascospores
10. Expalin why ascomycetes can be useful to geneticists studying genetic recombination
11. Explain why the Dueteromycota are called fungi imperfecta
12. Describe the anatomy of lichens and explain how they reproduce
13. Provide evidence for both sides of the debate on whether symbiosis in lichens is parasitic or mutualistic
14. Describe the ecological importance of lichens
15. Explain why fungi are ecologically and commercially important
16. Describe how the mutualistic relationship in mycorrhizae is beneficial to both the fungus and the plant and explain its importance to natural ecosystems and agriculture
17. Describe a scenario for fungal phylogeny and list 2 possible ancestors of Zygomycota

 

absorption hyphae mycelium sdepta chitin coenocytic haustoria plasmoogamy karyogamy

dikaryon chytrids zygote fungi mycorrhizae sac fungi asci ascocarp conidia basidium

club fungus basidiocarps mold imperfect fungi yeast lichen soredia