Structure & Function
What are desmosomes?
Cell junctions in the stratum spinosum give keratinocytes their 'spiny' appearance and provide strong adhesion
Which are the key molecules on the vessel walls responsible for margination and adhesion?
Margination: Selectins
Adhesion: Integrins
What is the most important principle to prevent transmission of a disease?
Hand hygiene
Is the transmission of a Staphylococcus aureus bacteria from a person’s own microflora exogenous or endogenous?
Endogenous transmission
What does the socio-political aspect of race mean?
How social structures, power relations, discrimination, and cultural attitudes shape how race and skin colour are interpreted and experienced
What is the function and location of Meissner corpuscles?
Found in the papillary layer of the dermis, these receptors respond to light touch and low-frequency vibrations
Definition of acute inflammation (exact one)
A local response, by living tissue, to tissue injury, resulting in the formation of a fluid rich in protein and cells
In terms of IPC environmental cleaning, what surfaces/areas are steriled often to maintain hygiene?
High-touch surfaces
Medical equipment
Procedure areas
Shared facilities
Name 2 Fungi that are part of the normal skin flora
Malassezia spp and Candida spp
What is intersectionality?
How overlapping social categories such as race, gender, and class interact to affect access to healthcare and social opportunities.
What are the 3 types of melanin and where can they be found?
Eumelanin - responsible for dark colours in skin, eyes and hair
Pheomelanin - pigments lips, nipples
Neuromelanin - dark pigment present in pigment bearing neurons of deep brain nuclei
What is the latin name for each of the cardinal signs of inflammation?
- Redness (Rubor)
- Swelling (Tumour)
- Heat (Calor)
- Pain (Dolor)
- Loss of function (Functio Laesa)
When does transcription stop?
When RNA polymerase reaches a terminator sequence on the template strand
How does S.pyogenes get transmitted?
Direct contact: person to person (wounds)
Indirect contact: Aerosolised droplet standards
What is multidisciplinary or intersectional research?
Type of research where healthcare practitioners explore biology and consider how power, discrimination, and historical factors influence patient care
What does Vitamin D3 deficiency cause in children and adults?
Rickets in children and osteomalacia in adults
Name two cytokines involved in inflammation during a bacterial infection and state one function of cytokines.
TNF-a, IL-1-beta, IL-6
Signalling proteins that help control inflammation
How do you care for the skin of a patient with an open skin infection?
1. Follow IPC principles by washing hands and wearing clean gloves
2. Clean wound with mild soapy water and sterile instrument/saline flush
3. Cleanse skin surrounding the wound
4. Pat dry the area with a clean towel
Describe the follicular progression of a staphyloccocus aureus skin infection
Folliculitus>>Furuncle>>Carbuncle
What is racial profiling in medical research?
Using racial categories as a proxy for biological differences in medicine can lead to this, where health outcomes are incorrectly attributed to race instead of environmental or socio-economic factors
What is MITF (Microphthalmia-associated transcription factor)
A transcription factor that regulates melanocyte differentiation - its loss causes albinism, while excess can contribute to melanoma
During the inflammatory response to bacterial infection, which molecules are released first, and what happens after chemokines are released?
1. Pro-inflammatory cytokines (e.g., TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6)
2. Immune cells are recruited and migrate to the infection site, where they perform phagocytosis to eliminate bacteria.
How does peptide bond formation occur?
By nucleophilic attack of the α-amino group of the aminoacyl-tRNA on the carbonyl carbon of peptidyl-tRNA.
Name 2 virulence factors that are present in staphylococcus aureus and absent in streptococcus pyogenes as well as what they do
a) Catalase: breaks down hydrogen peroxide into water and oxygen
b) Coagulse: converts fibrinogen to fibrin, forming a clot around the bacteria
What is the Human Genome Project?
A scientific research project with the goal of determining the base pairs that make up human DNA, and of identifying, mapping and sequencing all of the genes of the human genome from both a physical and a functional standpoint.