MMG 301 EXAM 1 QUESTIONS ANSWERED CORRECTLY LATEST
UPDATE 2026
What kind of lenses do optical light microscopes have? - Answers Glass lenses
What kind of lenses do electron microscopes have? - Answers Magnet lenses
Magnification - Answers How big we can make something
Resolution - Answers Limits the size of what can be clearly seen
Why do we use immersion oil? - Answers Beneficial to light microscopy; increases
numerical aperature; not as much light gets through without the oil
Resolving Power Equation - Answers (.5 x λ) / numerical aperature
List the steps on the Gram Stain - Answers 1. Flood heat-fixed smear with crystal
violet for 1 minute
2. Add iodine solution for 1 minute
3. Decolorize with alcohol for 20 seconds
4. Counterstain with safranin for 1-2 minutes
List the steps for the Acid-Fast Stain - Answers 1. Small amount of organism
suspended in a saline solution is fixed on a slide
2. Slide is flooded with fuchsin and phenol for 3 minutes, gentle rinsed with water
3. Slide is decolorized with 3% HCl in 70% alcohol until color appears to be removed
for 2 minutes, rinsed wth water
4. Slide is flooded with methylene blue counterstain for 30 seconds, rinsed with water,
air-dried
Phase Contrast Microscopy - Answers Converts differences in refractive index within
unstained cells into contrast (living cells)
Darkfield Microscopy - Answers Utilizes cardoid condenser between light source and
specimen (good for looking at extremely thin cells)
Describe the hydrophobic head and the hydrophobic tail of a phospholipid - Answers
Made of fatty acids linked to a glycerol phosphate by an ester bond
Ampithatic Molecule - Answers Molecule that contains both hydrophobic and
hydrophilic regions
Where are ester lipids found? - Answers Bacteria Eukarya
Where are ether lipids found? - Answers Archea
Fluid Mosiac & Its Functions - Answers Acts as a barrier, anchor for membrane
proteins, site of energy generation
Chemiosmosis - Answers Movement from a higher concentration to a lower
concentration; releases energy
List the three mechanisms - Answers !. Simple transport (driven by energy in the
proton motive force)
2. Group Translocation (chemical modification of the transported substance driven by
phosphoenolpyruvate)
3. ABC Transporter (periplasmic binding proteins are involved and energy comes
from ATP)
Uniport - Answers "Passve diffusion" - One molecule passes into the cell without the
use of energy
Antiport - Answers One nutrient transported in, another nutrient transported out
Symport - Answers A nutrient and a different molecule are transported in together
O-Specific Polysaccharide - Answers Purple Part of Diagram (LPS)
Core Polysaccharide - Answers Pink Part of Diagram (LPS)
, Lipid A - Answers Yellow Part of Diagram (LPS)
What does LPS stand for? What does it act as? - Answers Lipopolysaccharide - Can
act as an endotoxin
What does peptidoglycan look like in a sample of e. Coli? - Answers Polymer of a
tetrapeptide repeating unit
G-M-G-M...
List the differences between gram (+) and gram (-) peptidoglycan sheets and
crosslinks - Answers Gram (+)
1-3 sheets
Many crosslinks
Gram (-)
10-15+ sheets
Few crosslinks
Teichoic Acid - Answers Polymer of repeating ribitols or glycerol phosphate
Lipoteichoic Acid - Answers Teichoic acids covalently bonded by membrane lipids
Why does gram (+) bacteria retain color during a gram stain? - Answers The
difference of the thickness of the peptidoglycan allows for the crystal violet stain to
remain during decolorization in gram (+) bacteria
List the major components in a gram (-) outer membrane - Answers
Lipopolysaccharide (LPS)
Porins
Transport proteins
What part of the LPS can be used for diagnostic testing? - Answers O-Specific
Polysaccharide
What part of the LPS can define a serotype? - Answers O-Specific Polysaccharide
Where is the location of the porins in the gram (-) outer membrane? - Answers Span
the outer membrane bilayer; trimetric tube-like proteins
S-Layers - Answers A paracrystalline array of protein that completely surrounds and
protects the cell
Paracrystalline - Answers No spaces
How can 4-6 million base pairs fit into one cell? - Answers DNA is formed into
supercoils by topoimerases to create an aggregated nucleoid
Where are the flagella located in spirochetes? - Answers Inside periplasm
How do spirochetes move? - Answers "Corkscrew" through a medium because of
rotation of the bacterium
What is glycogen? - Answers Carbon storage polymer made of glucose
How is glycogen utilized? - Answers It is degraded under carbon limitation to
provide the cell with carbon and energy
List the phosphate reaction - Answers ATP + polyphosphase ⇌ ADP +
polyphosphate(n+1)
glucose → glucose-6-phosphate + polyphosphate(n-1)
What is PHB (poly-beta-hydroxybutyrate) extracted from? - Answers Extracted from
poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) by acid hydrolysis
Why is PBH (poly-beta-hydroxybutyrate) consumed by a cell? - Answers PHB is
consumed to sustain growth and maintain of viability when exogenous supply is
insufficient
What are the two proteins in gas vesicles? - Answers GvpA and GvpC
UPDATE 2026
What kind of lenses do optical light microscopes have? - Answers Glass lenses
What kind of lenses do electron microscopes have? - Answers Magnet lenses
Magnification - Answers How big we can make something
Resolution - Answers Limits the size of what can be clearly seen
Why do we use immersion oil? - Answers Beneficial to light microscopy; increases
numerical aperature; not as much light gets through without the oil
Resolving Power Equation - Answers (.5 x λ) / numerical aperature
List the steps on the Gram Stain - Answers 1. Flood heat-fixed smear with crystal
violet for 1 minute
2. Add iodine solution for 1 minute
3. Decolorize with alcohol for 20 seconds
4. Counterstain with safranin for 1-2 minutes
List the steps for the Acid-Fast Stain - Answers 1. Small amount of organism
suspended in a saline solution is fixed on a slide
2. Slide is flooded with fuchsin and phenol for 3 minutes, gentle rinsed with water
3. Slide is decolorized with 3% HCl in 70% alcohol until color appears to be removed
for 2 minutes, rinsed wth water
4. Slide is flooded with methylene blue counterstain for 30 seconds, rinsed with water,
air-dried
Phase Contrast Microscopy - Answers Converts differences in refractive index within
unstained cells into contrast (living cells)
Darkfield Microscopy - Answers Utilizes cardoid condenser between light source and
specimen (good for looking at extremely thin cells)
Describe the hydrophobic head and the hydrophobic tail of a phospholipid - Answers
Made of fatty acids linked to a glycerol phosphate by an ester bond
Ampithatic Molecule - Answers Molecule that contains both hydrophobic and
hydrophilic regions
Where are ester lipids found? - Answers Bacteria Eukarya
Where are ether lipids found? - Answers Archea
Fluid Mosiac & Its Functions - Answers Acts as a barrier, anchor for membrane
proteins, site of energy generation
Chemiosmosis - Answers Movement from a higher concentration to a lower
concentration; releases energy
List the three mechanisms - Answers !. Simple transport (driven by energy in the
proton motive force)
2. Group Translocation (chemical modification of the transported substance driven by
phosphoenolpyruvate)
3. ABC Transporter (periplasmic binding proteins are involved and energy comes
from ATP)
Uniport - Answers "Passve diffusion" - One molecule passes into the cell without the
use of energy
Antiport - Answers One nutrient transported in, another nutrient transported out
Symport - Answers A nutrient and a different molecule are transported in together
O-Specific Polysaccharide - Answers Purple Part of Diagram (LPS)
Core Polysaccharide - Answers Pink Part of Diagram (LPS)
, Lipid A - Answers Yellow Part of Diagram (LPS)
What does LPS stand for? What does it act as? - Answers Lipopolysaccharide - Can
act as an endotoxin
What does peptidoglycan look like in a sample of e. Coli? - Answers Polymer of a
tetrapeptide repeating unit
G-M-G-M...
List the differences between gram (+) and gram (-) peptidoglycan sheets and
crosslinks - Answers Gram (+)
1-3 sheets
Many crosslinks
Gram (-)
10-15+ sheets
Few crosslinks
Teichoic Acid - Answers Polymer of repeating ribitols or glycerol phosphate
Lipoteichoic Acid - Answers Teichoic acids covalently bonded by membrane lipids
Why does gram (+) bacteria retain color during a gram stain? - Answers The
difference of the thickness of the peptidoglycan allows for the crystal violet stain to
remain during decolorization in gram (+) bacteria
List the major components in a gram (-) outer membrane - Answers
Lipopolysaccharide (LPS)
Porins
Transport proteins
What part of the LPS can be used for diagnostic testing? - Answers O-Specific
Polysaccharide
What part of the LPS can define a serotype? - Answers O-Specific Polysaccharide
Where is the location of the porins in the gram (-) outer membrane? - Answers Span
the outer membrane bilayer; trimetric tube-like proteins
S-Layers - Answers A paracrystalline array of protein that completely surrounds and
protects the cell
Paracrystalline - Answers No spaces
How can 4-6 million base pairs fit into one cell? - Answers DNA is formed into
supercoils by topoimerases to create an aggregated nucleoid
Where are the flagella located in spirochetes? - Answers Inside periplasm
How do spirochetes move? - Answers "Corkscrew" through a medium because of
rotation of the bacterium
What is glycogen? - Answers Carbon storage polymer made of glucose
How is glycogen utilized? - Answers It is degraded under carbon limitation to
provide the cell with carbon and energy
List the phosphate reaction - Answers ATP + polyphosphase ⇌ ADP +
polyphosphate(n+1)
glucose → glucose-6-phosphate + polyphosphate(n-1)
What is PHB (poly-beta-hydroxybutyrate) extracted from? - Answers Extracted from
poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) by acid hydrolysis
Why is PBH (poly-beta-hydroxybutyrate) consumed by a cell? - Answers PHB is
consumed to sustain growth and maintain of viability when exogenous supply is
insufficient
What are the two proteins in gas vesicles? - Answers GvpA and GvpC
