Question Answer
Introduction to structure and function of blood What is blood made up of?
Plasma
Red cells
White cells and platelets
What is a blood film Same as blood smear
What basic cell organelles do red blood cells not contain? Nucleus
DNA (not an organelle but still)
RNA
Mitochondria
What is another name for a red blood cell? Erythrocytes
What is another name for a white blood cell? Leukocytes
What are the two types of white blood cell? Neutrophil and lymphocytes
Give some features of neutrophil Polymorphonuclear (multilobed nucleus)
Granulocyte (prominent cytoplasmic granules)
Give the three types of granulocyte Neutrophil
Eosinophil
Basophil
How do you distinguish a neutrophil? Weakly staining
How do you distinguish an eosinophil? Stain red with eosin
1-4% white blood cell
multinuclei within the cytoplasm
How do you distinguish a basophil? Stain blue/purple with basic dyes less than 0.5% of WBC
Give features of mononuclear cells Lack granules
Large, regular nuclei
Give the two types of mononuclear cells Monocytes
Lymphocytes
Give another name for a platelet Thrombocytes
Give features of platelets Cytoplasmic fragments
No nucleus
Membrane bound
Contains granules
Where do blood cells come from? Stem cells in bone marrow
What does plasma contain? Water
salt
proteins
Metabolites
Carbs
Lipids
Name the ionic constituents of plasma Positive: sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium and
hydrogen
Negative: chloride, bicarbonates, phosphate, sulfate and
organic anions
What is the difference between plasma and serum? Serum is plasma without the clotting factors
,How much of plasma is protein? 7-9%
How much of the plasma protein is albumin? 90%
What does blood transport? Carry oxygen/ nutrients to tissues
Remove CO2/ other waste substances from tissues
And other substances from sites of production ->sites of action
What in the blood is involved in immunity? White blood cells and plasma proteins
What in the blood is involved in clotting? Platelets and plasma proteins
What is the blood’s role in homeostasis? Maintaining a pH of 7.4
Controlling distribution of water solutes
Distributing heat
Question Answer
How do blood cells remove CO2 from body tissues? Most CO2 carried as bicarbonate in plasma
RBC enzyme carbonic anhydrase helps CO2 to dissolve in
plasma and in the tissues and come out of solution in the lungs
What is the average life span of RBC’s? 120 days
What is the average diameter of RBC’s? 8 micrometers
What is the average thickness of RBC’s? 2 micrometers
What is haemoglobin made up of? 2 alpha globin chains and two beta globin chains
What type of iron atom does haemoglobin contain? Fe++
What does oxygen + haemoglobin form? Oxyhaemoglobin
What colour is oxyhaemoglobin? Bright red
What colour is deoxyhaemoglobin? Dark red
How does pulse oximetry work? Measures the colour of haemoglobin and determines if the
patient is hypoxic
What is pulse oximetry? The thing that measures oxygen saturation on your finger
How many haemoglobin molecules are there in each RBC? 300 million (about 50% of space)
What substances does plasma carry? Lipids
Lipid soluble hormones and vitamins
Metal ions
What do neutrophils do in the immune system? Phagocytosis and kill bacteria and fungi
Main mediators of innate immunity
What do lymphocytes do in the immune system? Main mediators of acquired immunity
Produce antibodies
Kills virus infected cells
What do eosinophils do in the immune system? Kill parasites
Involved in allergic responses
What do basophils do in the immune system? Kill parasites
Involved in allergic responses
, Involved in inflammation
What do monocytes do in the immune system? Phagocytosis of dead cells and pathogens
What do immunoglobulins do in the immune system? Act as antibodies against pathogens
What do complement proteins do in the immune system? Kill bacteria and other pathogens
Cooperated with immunoglobulins and WBCs
What is the main role of platelets? Haemostasis
How do platelets mediate haemostasis (basic) Recognise damage at blood vessel wall
Forms a platelet plug
Prevent/ stops bleeding
How does plasma help in haemostasis? Fibrinogen ->fibrin which forms a blood clot
Clotting factors control the process
Fibrin clot reinforces primary platelet plug
What is the plasma homeostasis disturbed by? Disorders in:
Kidney
Liver
Lungs
Cardiovascular system
Endocrine organs
What must be kept in safe limits in plasma? pH, ion concentrations and protein concentrations
Question Answer
What are you checking if you check the urea and electrolytes in kidney functions
the blood?
What is the total blood volume in a 70kg male? 5 litres
How much plasma is there in a 70kg male? 2.5-3 litres
What is a haemocrit? Packed cell volume- total cell volume
What is the normal haemocrit value? 0.4-0.5
What does a full blood count include? Haemoglobin concentrations
Mean red cell volume
Mean red cell haemoglobin content
Haemocrit
Total white blood cell count
What is the haemoglobin concentrations used to diagnose? Anaemia
What is the total white blood cell count important in diagnosing? Infections
What are immunoglobulins made by? B lymphocytes
Essentials of virology II
What is the abbreviation for single-stranded RNA?
ssRNA
What is the abbreviation for double-stranded RNA? dsRNA
What is the abbreviation for single-stranded DNA? ssDNA
What is the abbreviation for double-stranded DNA? dsDNA
, What does ‘RNA genomes can be linear and segmented’ mean? More than one RNA per capsid
Are DNA genomes linear or circular? Can be either
Are viral genomes all positive or negative sense? No, they can be either
What enzyme replicates DNA? DNA polymerase
What enzyme transcribes DNA? RNA polymerase
Where is RNA translated? Ribosome
What happens in a simple spores genome replication? Just replicates and makes proteins
What is positive sense RNA? RNA that can code the genes from 5’->3’ end so the RNA
polymerase can read it
What is negative sense RNA? RNA that codes genes from 3’->5’ end. The RNA polymerase
then reads the RNA and makes a complimentary strand in the
opposite direction
Which type of viruses subverts the central dogma? Retroviruses
What is the subverted central dogma mediated by? Reverse transcriptase
What is the Baltimore classification? Genomes classified depending on what their genetic material
looks like
What are polymerase proteins? Enzymes that are involved in the catalysis of nucelotides to
nucleic acids
Question Answer
How do polymerase proteins interact with the nucleic acid? In protein-nucleic acid interactions
What are structural proteins? Proteins that form the capsid into which the nucleus is packaged
How do proteins interact with one another? In protein-protein interactions
What is pathogenesis? The disease that results from the intracellular environment
changing to facilitate viral replication
How do viruses cause cancer? By subverting the cell cycle checking points
What do E6 and E7 in HPV do? Remove the checkpoints from the cell cycle
How do some viruses evade the immune system? They replicate inside the immune cells
What does inhibition of immune cell function allow? Other pathogens to replicate in virus infected hosts and thus,
disease occurs
How does HIV cause cancer? Not directly- just stops the immune response attacking other
viruses that will cause cancer
Bacterial Genetics:
What is genomics?
The study of genomes and DNA/RNA, genome replication,
gene expression, genetic variation and distribution
What are the two main components of the bacterial genome? Chromosome and mobile genetic elements (like
plasmids or prophages)
Introduction to structure and function of blood What is blood made up of?
Plasma
Red cells
White cells and platelets
What is a blood film Same as blood smear
What basic cell organelles do red blood cells not contain? Nucleus
DNA (not an organelle but still)
RNA
Mitochondria
What is another name for a red blood cell? Erythrocytes
What is another name for a white blood cell? Leukocytes
What are the two types of white blood cell? Neutrophil and lymphocytes
Give some features of neutrophil Polymorphonuclear (multilobed nucleus)
Granulocyte (prominent cytoplasmic granules)
Give the three types of granulocyte Neutrophil
Eosinophil
Basophil
How do you distinguish a neutrophil? Weakly staining
How do you distinguish an eosinophil? Stain red with eosin
1-4% white blood cell
multinuclei within the cytoplasm
How do you distinguish a basophil? Stain blue/purple with basic dyes less than 0.5% of WBC
Give features of mononuclear cells Lack granules
Large, regular nuclei
Give the two types of mononuclear cells Monocytes
Lymphocytes
Give another name for a platelet Thrombocytes
Give features of platelets Cytoplasmic fragments
No nucleus
Membrane bound
Contains granules
Where do blood cells come from? Stem cells in bone marrow
What does plasma contain? Water
salt
proteins
Metabolites
Carbs
Lipids
Name the ionic constituents of plasma Positive: sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium and
hydrogen
Negative: chloride, bicarbonates, phosphate, sulfate and
organic anions
What is the difference between plasma and serum? Serum is plasma without the clotting factors
,How much of plasma is protein? 7-9%
How much of the plasma protein is albumin? 90%
What does blood transport? Carry oxygen/ nutrients to tissues
Remove CO2/ other waste substances from tissues
And other substances from sites of production ->sites of action
What in the blood is involved in immunity? White blood cells and plasma proteins
What in the blood is involved in clotting? Platelets and plasma proteins
What is the blood’s role in homeostasis? Maintaining a pH of 7.4
Controlling distribution of water solutes
Distributing heat
Question Answer
How do blood cells remove CO2 from body tissues? Most CO2 carried as bicarbonate in plasma
RBC enzyme carbonic anhydrase helps CO2 to dissolve in
plasma and in the tissues and come out of solution in the lungs
What is the average life span of RBC’s? 120 days
What is the average diameter of RBC’s? 8 micrometers
What is the average thickness of RBC’s? 2 micrometers
What is haemoglobin made up of? 2 alpha globin chains and two beta globin chains
What type of iron atom does haemoglobin contain? Fe++
What does oxygen + haemoglobin form? Oxyhaemoglobin
What colour is oxyhaemoglobin? Bright red
What colour is deoxyhaemoglobin? Dark red
How does pulse oximetry work? Measures the colour of haemoglobin and determines if the
patient is hypoxic
What is pulse oximetry? The thing that measures oxygen saturation on your finger
How many haemoglobin molecules are there in each RBC? 300 million (about 50% of space)
What substances does plasma carry? Lipids
Lipid soluble hormones and vitamins
Metal ions
What do neutrophils do in the immune system? Phagocytosis and kill bacteria and fungi
Main mediators of innate immunity
What do lymphocytes do in the immune system? Main mediators of acquired immunity
Produce antibodies
Kills virus infected cells
What do eosinophils do in the immune system? Kill parasites
Involved in allergic responses
What do basophils do in the immune system? Kill parasites
Involved in allergic responses
, Involved in inflammation
What do monocytes do in the immune system? Phagocytosis of dead cells and pathogens
What do immunoglobulins do in the immune system? Act as antibodies against pathogens
What do complement proteins do in the immune system? Kill bacteria and other pathogens
Cooperated with immunoglobulins and WBCs
What is the main role of platelets? Haemostasis
How do platelets mediate haemostasis (basic) Recognise damage at blood vessel wall
Forms a platelet plug
Prevent/ stops bleeding
How does plasma help in haemostasis? Fibrinogen ->fibrin which forms a blood clot
Clotting factors control the process
Fibrin clot reinforces primary platelet plug
What is the plasma homeostasis disturbed by? Disorders in:
Kidney
Liver
Lungs
Cardiovascular system
Endocrine organs
What must be kept in safe limits in plasma? pH, ion concentrations and protein concentrations
Question Answer
What are you checking if you check the urea and electrolytes in kidney functions
the blood?
What is the total blood volume in a 70kg male? 5 litres
How much plasma is there in a 70kg male? 2.5-3 litres
What is a haemocrit? Packed cell volume- total cell volume
What is the normal haemocrit value? 0.4-0.5
What does a full blood count include? Haemoglobin concentrations
Mean red cell volume
Mean red cell haemoglobin content
Haemocrit
Total white blood cell count
What is the haemoglobin concentrations used to diagnose? Anaemia
What is the total white blood cell count important in diagnosing? Infections
What are immunoglobulins made by? B lymphocytes
Essentials of virology II
What is the abbreviation for single-stranded RNA?
ssRNA
What is the abbreviation for double-stranded RNA? dsRNA
What is the abbreviation for single-stranded DNA? ssDNA
What is the abbreviation for double-stranded DNA? dsDNA
, What does ‘RNA genomes can be linear and segmented’ mean? More than one RNA per capsid
Are DNA genomes linear or circular? Can be either
Are viral genomes all positive or negative sense? No, they can be either
What enzyme replicates DNA? DNA polymerase
What enzyme transcribes DNA? RNA polymerase
Where is RNA translated? Ribosome
What happens in a simple spores genome replication? Just replicates and makes proteins
What is positive sense RNA? RNA that can code the genes from 5’->3’ end so the RNA
polymerase can read it
What is negative sense RNA? RNA that codes genes from 3’->5’ end. The RNA polymerase
then reads the RNA and makes a complimentary strand in the
opposite direction
Which type of viruses subverts the central dogma? Retroviruses
What is the subverted central dogma mediated by? Reverse transcriptase
What is the Baltimore classification? Genomes classified depending on what their genetic material
looks like
What are polymerase proteins? Enzymes that are involved in the catalysis of nucelotides to
nucleic acids
Question Answer
How do polymerase proteins interact with the nucleic acid? In protein-nucleic acid interactions
What are structural proteins? Proteins that form the capsid into which the nucleus is packaged
How do proteins interact with one another? In protein-protein interactions
What is pathogenesis? The disease that results from the intracellular environment
changing to facilitate viral replication
How do viruses cause cancer? By subverting the cell cycle checking points
What do E6 and E7 in HPV do? Remove the checkpoints from the cell cycle
How do some viruses evade the immune system? They replicate inside the immune cells
What does inhibition of immune cell function allow? Other pathogens to replicate in virus infected hosts and thus,
disease occurs
How does HIV cause cancer? Not directly- just stops the immune response attacking other
viruses that will cause cancer
Bacterial Genetics:
What is genomics?
The study of genomes and DNA/RNA, genome replication,
gene expression, genetic variation and distribution
What are the two main components of the bacterial genome? Chromosome and mobile genetic elements (like
plasmids or prophages)
