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AQA level 3 extended certificate in Applied Science - Unit 6a Microbiology coursework
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This document gives a sample coursework for the Unit 6a Microbiology part of Applied Science.
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Microbiology,Main groups of microorganisms in terms of their structure and function
Describe akaryotes, prokaryotes and eukaryotes in terms of their characteristic’s features
Akaryotes
An Akaryote is a cell without a nucleus, the most common type of akaryote is a virus. They are
acellular and non-living. E.g. viruses such as HIV-1, which are acellular organisms
20-400 nanometres in size
The following image shows a HIV virus:
1
Relate the characteristics of akaryotes to their structure and function
Glycoproteins are proteins covered with flexible carbohydrates, helps HIV virus to attach to other
cells in order to invade them.2
Lipid membrane contains the lipids during the budding process of the virus, critical for fusion of the
virus.
RNA is a circular loose DNA, vital for replication of virus cells
Capsid is a bigger outer protein coat, that offers extra protection of the Viral RNA.
Matrix is a large protein layer, gives structure to the virus
1
StudyMind, (2019) HIV [online] Youtube.com, USA
Available from: (254) AQA A Level Biology: HIV - YouTube (7.09.21)
I consider this YouTube channel StudyMind to be a trustworthy source as the channel provides numerous revision videos on different
topics of science e.g. GCSE, A level biology and GCSE, A level chemistry.
2
Glycoprotein function and structure- Goodsell, D (2014) HIV envelope Glycoprotein [online] pdb-101.rcsb.org, USA
PDB-101: Molecule of the Month: HIV Envelope Glycoprotein (rcsb.org) (17.09.21)
PDB-101 is an online platform for teachers, students and for the general public in the subject field of proteins and nucleic acids. This site
was formed in 2011 and has vast amounts of information about molecules therefore I consider it to be very useful and also a trustworthy
source of information due to it having a specific author name and it has plenty of references.
,Reverse transcriptase is an enzyme that gives the virus it’s retrovirus quality by helping the virus
generate the DNA from the RNA of HIV.
Nucleocapsid is a protein coat layer, which protects the RNA.
The HIV virus was first isolated by an American scientist named Robert Gallo and a French scientist
named Luc Montagnier in 1983.
Viruses can contain either RNA or DNA.
Akaryotes have no organelles, so they have to reside within other cells to survive. They can’t
produce any protein as they have no ribosomes. However, they do have DNA/RNA. In which
genetic material of the virus is enclosed within a protein coat called a capsid. On the membrane
surfaces of these viruses, they have proteins called viral antigens, which allows the virus to attach
to other cells.
HIV (Human immunodeficiency Virus) is a virus that infects humans and causes AIDS (acquired
immune deficiency syndrome). HIV has a lipid envelope, RNA as its genetic material and an
enzyme called reverse transcriptase which generates DNA from the HIV RNA. HIV is known as a
retrovirus because it generates DNA from RNA using reverse transcriptase, the DNA generated will
then integrate into the host cell DNA which will result in the generation of new HIV particles using
host cell machinery.
What diseases can viruses cause?
● Chicken pox is very common in children, it is a highly contagious virus also referred to as
Varicella-Zoster virus. It causes red spots and rashes on the skin.
3
● Smallpox (in the past, now can be prevented) was a very serious and deadly contagious
virus also referred to as the Variola Virus. It causes blisters all over the body and eventually
can kill you, but it was found out that contracting cow pox can prevent smallpox from being
deadly.
4
3
Rovira, I. (2018) Chicken Pox: Vaccine and Symptoms (In Adults and Children) [online] healthwaymag.com, USA
Available from: Chicken Pox: Vaccine and Symptoms (In Adults and Children) (healthywaymag.com) (08.09.21)
Healthwaymag is a health information site which describes physical and mental diseases in society. It describes diseases cause by poor
diet in nutrition to mental disorders in psychology. I used Healthwaymag in order to get a picture of chicken pox. I consider this source to
be trustworthy because it has an author name, date of publication and some other source of information about other articles. However, it
has no citations.
4
CDC (2016) What is Smallpox? [online] CDC.org, USA
Available from: What is Smallpox? | Smallpox | CDC (08.09.21)
The Centers for Disease Control and prevention is an organisation which aims to help prevent the spread of diseases in society. For
example, COVID-19. I used CDC to get a picture of what the smallpox disease looks like. I consider CDC to be a trustworthy source
because it mentions a key source, has a date of the last edit which was 2016 and it has an author. However, it has no citations and the
author is only specific to the CDC organisation team.
, ● Coronavirus is a branch of respiratory viruses, symptoms vary depending on the variant, but
common symptoms are coughing, headache, loss of smell or even taste.
5
Describe akaryotes, prokaryotes and eukaryotes in terms of their characteristic features
Prokaryotes
Unicellular organism that lacks a membrane-bound nucleus, mitochondria, or any other membrane-
bound organelle. E.g. Bacteria, Archaea, Cyanobacteria
Bacteria
Not visible to the human eye
Usually about 0.1 millimetres in length
Has 4 main shapes:
● Cocci - spherical bacteria
● Bacilli- rod shaped bacteria e.g. typhoid or anthrax
● Spirilla- large spiral shaped bacteria e.g. syphilis
● Vibrio- crescent shaped bacteria e.g. cholera
Archaea6
Very similar to the bacteria cell, however, they do have some
clear differences:
● They have no vulnerability to antibiotic attacks.
● The Archaea membranes are composed of lipids instead of
phospholipids which alters the Archaea’s appearance.
● They are often found in extreme environments therefore they
are classified as extremophiles.
5
Blogenium (2020) 20 Horrible Images of Corona Virus [online] Blogenium.com, USA
Available from: 20 Horrible Images of Corona Virus - COVID-19 - On Blogenium (17.09.21)
Blogenium is a photography site which offers lots of different wallpapers and backgrounds for image uses. I used Blogenium to find a
picture of the Corona Virus. I consider this source to be a trustworthy source because it has a date of publication and an author.
6
BasicBiology (2018) Archaea [online] BasicBiology.net, UK
Available from: Archaea | Basic Biology (17.09.21)
This page offers a list of resources and websites for biological research, in particular about different types of microorganisms such as
bacteria. The reliability of this source is questionable as it offers only a date of the last edit, no specific author and it doesn't give any
references.
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