Flashcards on Introduction to Medical Microbiology
Introduction to Medical Microbiology for Students | Study Guide
Tap to flip · Swipe to navigate
Taxonomy
22 cards
Card 1
Question: What is taxonomy and what primary benefit does it provide to scientists?
Answer: Taxonomy is the organization of organisms into groups based on shared characteristics; it organizes large amounts of information, lets scientists make
Card 2
Question: How does taxonomy assist in medical treatment after identifying a pathogen?
Answer: Once a pathogen is identified by taxonomy, physicians know the proper treatment to cure the patient because the organism's identity indicates its prop
Card 3
Question: Who is considered the father of taxonomy and what was his original classification?
Answer: Carl Linnaeus is considered the father of taxonomy; he originally grouped living things into two kingdoms: plants and animals.
Card 4
Question: What change to kingdom-level taxonomy did Robert H. Whittaker propose in 1969?
Answer: Whittaker proposed a five-kingdom taxonomy consisting of Monera, Protista, Plantae, Fungi, and Animalia.
Card 5
Question: What are the defining features of the kingdom Monera in Whittaker's system?
Answer: Monera includes organisms that lack a nucleus and membrane-bounded organelles (prokaryotes), such as bacteria.
Card 6
Question: How are Protista defined in Whittaker's five-kingdom system?
Answer: Protista are organisms that have either a single cell or no distinct tissues and organs, including unicellular eukaryotes and algae.
Card 7
Question: What distinguishes Fungi in Whittaker's classification?
Answer: Fungi are organisms that acquire food by absorption and include multicellular fungi and single-cell yeasts.
Card 8
Question: Why was Whittaker’s taxonomy revised after the 1970s?
Answer: The discovery of archaea—prokaryotes with distinct characteristics—led to further revision, showing prokaryotes should be divided into separate groups
Card 9
Question: What major contribution did Carl Woese make to taxonomy in the late 20th century?
Answer: Carl Woese studied rRNA sequences and showed that prokaryotes (archaebacteria and eubacteria) are distinct, leading to a three-domain system separatin
Card 10
Question: What are the three domains of life and which groups fall under each?
Answer: The three domains are Bacteria (eubacteria), Archaea (archaebacteria), and Eukarya (Protista, Fungi, Plantae, Animalia).