Question 1

The conversion of nitrate (NO3-) to nitrogen gas (N2) is called ______.

Accepted Answer

A)  ammoniﬁcation 
B)  nitriﬁcation 
C)  denitriﬁcation 
D)  nitrogen ﬁxation 
E)  photosynthesis 
A)  ammoniﬁcation 
B)  nitriﬁcation 
C)  denitriﬁcation 
D)  nitrogen ﬁxation 
E)  photosynthesis

Question 2

The study of the practical uses of microbes in various industries and technologies is ______.

Accepted Answer

A)  industrial microbiology 
B)  bioengineering 
C)  microbial ecology 
D)  biotechnology 
E)  applied microbiology 
A)  industrial microbiology 
B)  bioengineering 
C)  microbial ecology 
D)  biotechnology 
E)  applied microbiology

Question 3

Which of the following statements regarding biogeochemical cycles is incorrect?

Accepted Answer

A)  Elements cycle through biotic and abiotic environments. 
B)  Recycling keeps nutrients in balance. 
C)  All elements originate from a nonliving, long-term reservoir. 
D)  All organisms directly participate in recycling. 
E)  Cycles are simple systems between living and nonliving components. 
A)  Elements cycle through biotic and abiotic environments. 
B)  Recycling keeps nutrients in balance. 
C)  All elements originate from a nonliving, long-term reservoir. 
D)  All organisms directly participate in recycling. 
E)  Cycles are simple systems between living and nonliving components.

Question 4

Nutrient deﬁcient aquatic ecosystems are called ______.

Accepted Answer

A)  autotrophic 
B)  oligotrophic 
C)  eutrophic 
D)  hypotrophic 
E)  epitrophic 
A)  autotrophic 
B)  oligotrophic 
C)  eutrophic 
D)  hypotrophic 
E)  epitrophic

Question 5

The mutualistic partnership between plant roots and microbes is ______.

Accepted Answer

A)  rhizopods 
B)  mycorrhizae 
C)  basidia 
D)  hyphae 
E)  lichens 
A)  rhizopods 
B)  mycorrhizae 
C)  basidia 
D)  hyphae 
E)  lichens

Question 6

Which of the following statements regarding red tides is incorrect?

Accepted Answer

A)  Red tides result from an overgrowth of dinoﬂagellates. 
B)  Toxins produced by dinoﬂagellates are skin irritants. 
C)  Red tides are also known as harmful algal blooms (HABs). 
D)  Dinoﬂagellates produce a toxin that causes paralytic shellﬁsh poisoning. 
A)  Red tides result from an overgrowth of dinoﬂagellates. 
B)  Toxins produced by dinoﬂagellates are skin irritants. 
C)  Red tides are also known as harmful algal blooms (HABs). 
D)  Dinoﬂagellates produce a toxin that causes paralytic shellﬁsh poisoning.

Question 7

Which of the following organisms anaerobically reduces sulfates to hydrogen sulﬁde or metal sulﬁde?

Accepted Answer

A)  Nitrosococcus 
B)  Desulfovibrio 
C)  Thiobacillus thiooxidans 
D)  Rhizobium 
E)  Thiobacillus ferrooxidans 
A)  Nitrosococcus 
B)  Desulfovibrio 
C)  Thiobacillus thiooxidans 
D)  Rhizobium 
E)  Thiobacillus ferrooxidans

Question 8

You are preparing a garden and want to provide the best environment for your plants. Which of the following would you add to the potting soil?

Accepted Answer

A)  Sulfur oxidizers 
B)  Mycorrhizae inoculant 
C)  Bacteriophage 
D)  Coliform bacteria 
A)  Sulfur oxidizers 
B)  Mycorrhizae inoculant 
C)  Bacteriophage 
D)  Coliform bacteria

Question 9

Which microorganism is considered phytoplankton?

Accepted Answer

A)  Nitrogen ?xing bacteria 
B)  Sulfate reducers 
C)  Cyanobacteria 
D)  Mycorrhizae 
A)  Nitrogen ?xing bacteria 
B)  Sulfate reducers 
C)  Cyanobacteria 
D)  Mycorrhizae

Question 10

The zone of soil around roots of plants is called the ______.

Accepted Answer

A)  ionosphere 
B)  rhizosphere 
C)  biosphere 
D)  hydrosphere 
E)  lithosphere 
A)  ionosphere 
B)  rhizosphere 
C)  biosphere 
D)  hydrosphere 
E)  lithosphere

Question 11

Which of the following types of microbes is most likely to be found in the sediment of Lake Michigan?

Accepted Answer

A)  Anaerobes; oxygen is least abundant in the sediment layer 
B)  Autotrophs; their carbon source is dissolved carbon dioxide 
C)  Mesophiles; temperatures in the hypolimnion support growth in the 4-9°C range 
D)  Cyanobacteria; seasonal upwelling of nutrients can cause dramatic increases in their numbers 
A)  Anaerobes; oxygen is least abundant in the sediment layer 
B)  Autotrophs; their carbon source is dissolved carbon dioxide 
C)  Mesophiles; temperatures in the hypolimnion support growth in the 4-9°C range 
D)  Cyanobacteria; seasonal upwelling of nutrients can cause dramatic increases in their numbers

Question 12

Vast numbers of microorganisms are being genetically characterized without culturing them in the laboratory today through ______.

Accepted Answer

A)  column chromatography 
B)  metagenomic sequencing 
C)  mass spectrometry and proteomics 
D)  polymerase chain reaction 
A)  column chromatography 
B)  metagenomic sequencing 
C)  mass spectrometry and proteomics 
D)  polymerase chain reaction

Question 13

Looking at the use of antibiotics as growth promoters in livestock through the lens of "One Health," which of the following statements best describes the interrelationship of these components of the biosphere?

Accepted Answer

A)  Choosing a vegetarian lifestyle goes a long way to avoid risks associated with antibiotic- treated livestock. 
B)  Spontaneous antibiotic resistance that arises in animals can be rapidly spread to humans who work on factory farms. 
C)  The broad range of antibiotics available will provide widespread protection from pathogenic microbes. 
D)  Livestock can be more susceptible to infectious diseases because of the energy required for such rapid growth. 
A)  Choosing a vegetarian lifestyle goes a long way to avoid risks associated with antibiotic- treated livestock. 
B)  Spontaneous antibiotic resistance that arises in animals can be rapidly spread to humans who work on factory farms. 
C)  The broad range of antibiotics available will provide widespread protection from pathogenic microbes. 
D)  Livestock can be more susceptible to infectious diseases because of the energy required for such rapid growth.

Question 14

Plastic marine debris was collected from multiple sites in the ocean and examined with electron microscopy and next-generation sequencing. These techniques revealed microbial communities growing on the plastics. Which of the following statements is correct regarding these communities?

Accepted Answer

A)  At least one member of the community must synthesize an enzyme to degrade the hydrocarbon comprising the plastic. 
B)  There are no bacteriophage that use these microbes as hosts, as viruses are rare in marine ecosystems. 
C)  The community within the plastic must be very similar to the community in the surrounding ocean waters. 
D)  These communities are very likely to be pure cultures, as plastics have been synthesized precisely because they are resistant to microbial degradation. 
A)  At least one member of the community must synthesize an enzyme to degrade the hydrocarbon comprising the plastic. 
B)  There are no bacteriophage that use these microbes as hosts, as viruses are rare in marine ecosystems. 
C)  The community within the plastic must be very similar to the community in the surrounding ocean waters. 
D)  These communities are very likely to be pure cultures, as plastics have been synthesized precisely because they are resistant to microbial degradation.

Question 15

A collection of organisms, together with the physical and chemical factors in their environment, are called a/an ______.

Accepted Answer

A)  ecosystem 
B)  lithosphere 
C)  biosphere 
D)  atmosphere 
E)  hydrosphere 
A)  ecosystem 
B)  lithosphere 
C)  biosphere 
D)  atmosphere 
E)  hydrosphere

Question 16

The combustion of fossil fuels, such as coal, oil, and gas, have contributed to the steady increase in atmospheric CO? gas over the last 25 years.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 17

The majority of Earth's water is found in ______.

Accepted Answer

A)  oceans 
B)  soil moisture 
C)  ground water 
D)  icecaps and glaciers 
E)  freshwater lakes 
A)  oceans 
B)  soil moisture 
C)  ground water 
D)  icecaps and glaciers 
E)  freshwater lakes

Question 18

You have been diagnosed with neurotoxic poisoning after having ingested an algal toxin, called brevetoxin, produced by Karenia brevis. In which food did you likely consume this?

Accepted Answer

A)  Oysters 
B)  Tomatoes 
C)  Canned tuna 
D)  Freshwater trout 
A)  Oysters 
B)  Tomatoes 
C)  Canned tuna 
D)  Freshwater trout

Question 19

Most of the organic sulfur is located in _______.

Accepted Answer

A)  nucleotides and nucleic acids 
B)  monosaccharides and carbohydrates 
C)  fatty acids and lipids 
D)  amino acids and proteins 
A)  nucleotides and nucleic acids 
B)  monosaccharides and carbohydrates 
C)  fatty acids and lipids 
D)  amino acids and proteins

Question 20

Considering the increase in tick-borne diseases in the context of "One Health," which of the following statements is correct?

Accepted Answer

A)  Lyme disease has spread from deer to humans upon increasing development of the forested environments usually inhabited by deer. 
B)  Ticks carrying multiple pathogens reproduce at a slower rate, rendering them less likely to infect humans. 
C)  Borrelia, Babesia, and Ehrlichia can rapidly adapt to changing insect vectors, thereby increasing their populations as they move from ticks to mosquitoes. 
D)  Ticks carrying Borrelia are likely to encounter hosts already infected with Babesia or Ehrlichia, resulting in ticks that co-infect with multiple pathogens. 
A)  Lyme disease has spread from deer to humans upon increasing development of the forested environments usually inhabited by deer. 
B)  Ticks carrying multiple pathogens reproduce at a slower rate, rendering them less likely to infect humans. 
C)  Borrelia, Babesia, and Ehrlichia can rapidly adapt to changing insect vectors, thereby increasing their populations as they move from ticks to mosquitoes. 
D)  Ticks carrying Borrelia are likely to encounter hosts already infected with Babesia or Ehrlichia, resulting in ticks that co-infect with multiple pathogens.

Exam 24: Microbes and the Environment

The conversion of nitrate (NO3-) to nitrogen gas (N2) is called ______.

The study of the practical uses of microbes in various industries and technologies is ______.

Which of the following statements regarding biogeochemical cycles is incorrect?

Nutrient deﬁcient aquatic ecosystems are called ______.

The mutualistic partnership between plant roots and microbes is ______.

Which of the following statements regarding red tides is incorrect?

Which of the following organisms anaerobically reduces sulfates to hydrogen sulﬁde or metal sulﬁde?

You are preparing a garden and want to provide the best environment for your plants. Which of the following would you add to the potting soil?

Which microorganism is considered phytoplankton?

The zone of soil around roots of plants is called the ______.

Which of the following types of microbes is most likely to be found in the sediment of Lake Michigan?

Vast numbers of microorganisms are being genetically characterized without culturing them in the laboratory today through ______.

Looking at the use of antibiotics as growth promoters in livestock through the lens of "One Health," which of the following statements best describes the interrelationship of these components of the biosphere?

Plastic marine debris was collected from multiple sites in the ocean and examined with electron microscopy and next-generation sequencing. These techniques revealed microbial communities growing on the plastics. Which of the following statements is correct regarding these communities?

A collection of organisms, together with the physical and chemical factors in their environment, are called a/an ______.

The combustion of fossil fuels, such as coal, oil, and gas, have contributed to the steady increase in atmospheric CO? gas over the last 25 years.

The majority of Earth's water is found in ______.

You have been diagnosed with neurotoxic poisoning after having ingested an algal toxin, called brevetoxin, produced by Karenia brevis. In which food did you likely consume this?

Most of the organic sulfur is located in _______.

Considering the increase in tick-borne diseases in the context of "One Health," which of the following statements is correct?

The Main Themes of Microbiology

The Chemistry of Biology

Tools of the Laboratory: Methods for the Culturing of Microscopic Analysis of Microorganisms

Bacteria and Archaea

Eukaryotic Cells and Microorganisms

Viruses and Prions

Microbial Nutrition and Growth

Microbial Metabolism: the Chemical Crossroads of Life

Microbial Genetics

Genetic Analysis and Genetic Engineering

Physical and Chemical Control of Microbes

Antimicrobial Treatment

Microbe-Human Interactions: Health and Disease

Host Defenses I: Overview and Nonspecific Defenses

Host Defenses Ii: Specific Immunity and Immunization

Disorders in Immunity

Diagnosing Infections

Infectious Diseases Affecting the Skin and Eyes

Infectious Diseases Affecting the Nervous System

Infectious Diseases Affecting the Cardiovascular and Lymphatic Systems

Infectious Diseases Affecting the Respiratory System

Infectious Diseases Affecting the Gastrointestinal Tract

Infectious Diseases Affecting the Genitourinary System

Applied Microbiology and Food and Water Safety

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