Pharmacology 2060A/B Lecture Notes - Lecture 16: Genitourinary System, Flagellum, Syphilis

• School: Western University
• Department: Pharmacology
• Course: Pharmacology 2060A/B
• Professor: Andrea Di Sebastiano

Document Summary

Bacteria are single celled organisms that can be shaped as rods, spheres, or spirals. Bacteria occupy almost every habitat on earth, including humans! Most bacteria are rendered harmless by our immune system and some even play bene cial roles. However, some bacteria are pathogenic and cause diseases such as cholera, syphilis and tuberculosis. Before the discovery of antibiotics, bacterial infection was a major cause of morbidity and death. Bacteria have a number of virulence factors that they use to cause infection. Virulence factors include: fimbriae and pilli, flagella, secretion of toxins and enzymes, invasion. Fimbriae and pilli are hair like structures that project from the surface of bacterial cells. They allow bacteria to attach to certain sites in our body so they are not washed away. For example, the bacteria e. coli are known to cause bladder infections. E. coli produce mbriae that attach to the urogenital tract.