.png){kind=logo}
Microbiology is the study of microorganisms, including bacteria, viruses, fungi, and protozoa. These tiny organisms play a critical role in many aspects of life on Earth, from maintaining the balance of ecosystems to providing essential products like antibiotics and food. Microbiology also has a crucial role in medicine, where it is used to diagnose, prevent and treat infections. However, not everyone is aware of the interesting trivia and facts surrounding microbiology. Here are a few examples of microbiology trivia questions that might test your knowledge:
These are just a few examples of the many fascinating facts and trivia related to microbiology. Whether you're a student of biology or just someone who is curious about how these tiny organisms affect our world, these questions can be a fun and interesting way to learn more about the field of microbiology.
1. An anoxic environment wouldn’t be great for humans, but certain organisms thrive in them. Anoxic means that which element needed by most life to survive is absent?
Answer: Oxygen
2. A microscopic organism that is a microaerophile is most stable at a very low level of what atmospheric element, atomic number 8?
Answer: Oxygen
3. What bacterium, better known in its partially abbreviated name, is Gram-negative and rod-shaped? It had a famous outbreak in 1993 when “Jack In The Box” inadvertently spread it across four states.
Answer: E. Coli
4. A freaky fungus called ophiocordyceps is also known by what “Walking Dead”-esque name, since it changes the behavior of the ants it infects (almost like it’s controlling them)?
Answer: Zombie
5. Also called a "molecular machine," what organelle found in the cytoplasm of living cells builds proteins from amino acids?
Answer: Ribosome
6. Beginning with L are which molecules that are the primary building blocks of the plasma membrane in cells?
Answer: Lipids
7. Borrelia burgdorferi is a bacterial species known for causing what infectious disease that is spread by ticks in the genus Ixodes?
Answer: Lyme Disease
8. The most common DNA test used for paternity testing is performed by collecting buccal cells, which are found in what specific body part?
Answer: Cheek
9. There are non-image-forming ganglion cells in the human eye (and other mammals) that are still photosensitive and receive light signals that can help regulate and suppress the production of what "M" hormone that helps regulate the sleep-wake schedule?
Answer: Melatonin
10. The two subunits of the organelle known as the endoplasmic reticulum are typically abbreviated RER and SER. What do the "R" and "S" stand for in these abbreviations?
Answer: Rough
11. All amino acids contain carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and what other element that starts and ends with the same letter?
Answer: Nitrogen
12. Announced in 2020, the program AlphaFold 2 program became record-settingly good at using AI algorithms to accurately predict the structure of what biomolecules?
Answer: Proteins
13. The goal of any operating room is what “A” term, the state of being free from contamination from bacteria, viruses, or other microorganisms?
Answer: Aseptic
14. TMV, the first virus to ever be identified, is a "mosaic" virus that strikes what New World cash crop—represented by the "T" in "TMV?"
Answer: Tobacco
15. By what process do cyanobacteria, species of bacteria which are ubiquitous in marine environments, obtain energy? Some species can produce powerful toxins, called cyanotoxins, that can harm people and animals.
Answer: Photosynthesis
16. What iron-containing protein makes up 96% of the dry weight of a red blood cell, and 12 to 20 grams of every 100 mL of healthy human blood?
Answer: Hemoglobin
17. Name dropped in Men at Work's "Down Under," what iconic Australian spread is a byproduct of brewer's yeast in the beer-making process?
Answer: Vegemite
18. What “P” term refers to a virus, bacteria, or other agent that causes disease?
Answer: Pathogen
19. What five-letter word means a single-celled reproductive unit that is capable of giving rise to a new organism without sexual fusion, such as those found in fungi?
Answer: Spore
20. Which infectious disease that’s spread to humans by mosquito bites is caused by Plasmodium spp?
Answer: Malaria
21. Methanogens are archaea that produce methane as a byproduct, and are found in locations (including wetlands and the digestive tracts of humans and ruminants such as cows) that are low in or lack what element?
Answer: Oxygen
22. What is the name for extremophiles that flourish in a pH of 8.5 to 11, which would be too high for other organisms?
Answer: Alkaliphile
23. Often appended with "tea" to distinguish it from a culture of bacteria and yeast, what is the fermented, slightly effervescent, sweetened tea drink that is often consumed for purported health benefits? Although its origins are not fully known, it is believed to have originated in China.
Answer: Kombucha
24. A unicellular eukaryote called Plasmodium, which develops in blood-feeding insects like mosquitoes and then spreads to vertebrate hosts, is the cause of what deadly disease?
Answer: Malaria
25. A widespread system for classifying viruses is named for a researcher with what last name, which also happens to be the city where Johns Hopkins University and its prestigious medical school are located?
Answer: Baltimore
26. Zymology or zymurgy is the name of the science that studies the use of yeasts and bacteria to conduct what process, important to human culture?
Answer: Fermentation
27. Amino acids are organic compounds that unsurprisingly contain the amine functional group, and what other functional group do they always contain?
Answer: Carboxyl
28. What four-letter word, now commonly used in microbiology, was coined by Robert Hooke after looking at some cork through a microscope and seeing what looked to him like small rooms found in monasteries?
Answer: Cell
29. Though zymology spreads out to all sorts of stuff, "Zymurgy Magazine" caters to home hobbyists playing around with yeast to produce what potable stuff?
Answer: Beer
30. If you want to distinguish a spirochete from other bacteria, you can ask "Are you a spirochete?" or just look for what whippy F-word appendages?
Answer: Flagella
31. The bacterium Acetobacter Aceti is used in the production of which acidic condiment?
Answer: Vinegar
32. Koplik’s spots are the nasty little white abrasions from what contagious airborne disease that's repped by the first Ms in an MMR vaccine?
Answer: Measles
33. 5-HTP: 5-Hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP) is a naturally occurring amino acid that is a precursor to which neurotransmitter that helps regulate your mood?
Answer: Serotonin
34. In perhaps the first feature length biopic of a microbiologist, Paul Muni starred as what French scientist in a 1936 film about major advances in microbiology?
Answer: Louis Pasteur (in The Story of Louis Pasteur)
35. When a spermatozoon and an ovum love each other very much, they come together to form what alphabetically-disadvantaged cell with a full set of chromosomes?
Answer: Zygote
36. If a bacterium is described as "pyogenic," it means that an infection with that bacterium will lead to the production of what icky substance?
Answer: Pus
37. Carbon fixation, reduction, carbohydrate formation, and regeneration are the four basic phases of what photosynthesis cycle that's presumably pretty good friends with a comic strip tiger?
Answer: Calvin cycle
38. A gigaannum is a term that represents a very long time. One billion years in fact. About 3.5 gigaannums ago was when what critical process used to convert light energy into chemical energy is estimated to have begun?
Answer: Photosynthesis
39. Hemolysis describes the destruction of erythrocytes, which are also known as what type of colored cells?
Answer: Red blood cells
40. Bismuth sulfite agar is a type of agar media used to isolate species of what gram-negative bacteria, which is named after an American veterinary surgeon, rather than a fish?
Answer: Salmonella
41. Yeast extracts, which are used as food additives or flavorings, consist of the cell contents of yeast without which structural layer? This structural layer is absent from animal cells.
Answer: Cell wall
42. Paternity testing by DNA is considered 99.9% accurate. However, there are rare instances in which individuals have at least two different sets of genes rather than one set, which can lead to a false negative test. What is the "mythological" term for these folks?
Answer: Chimera
43. What’s the term for an organism that loves and thrives in an environment with a pH under 4?
Answer: Acidophile
44. Separating bacteria into 'positive' or 'negative' groups based on their cell wall composition is what 2-word testing method beginning with G?
Answer: Gram stain
45. What 10 point Scrabble letter is used when DNA’s structure is “left-handed” instead of right (e.g., A-DNA and B-DNA)?
Answer: Z
46. What four-letter jelly-like substance obtained from the cell walls of red algae is often used as a substrate in Petri dishes?
Answer: Agar
47. A dermatophyte is a fungus that needs what protein found in skin to grow? (Hint: It’s also great for your hair and nails!)
Answer: Keratin
48. There is a small area at the base of the brain consisting of several groups of nerve cell bodies that is considered the most important part of the brain for sexual functioning. What is this brain portion?
Answer: Hypothalamus
49. What is the Latin "C" word that is used in English to refer to either an eyelash (when speaking anatomically) or an organelle on eukaryotic cells that projects from a much larger cell body (when speaking microbiologically)?
Answer: Cilium
50. Pathogenicity means the ability of an infectious organism to cause disease; what V-word means the severity of the symptoms it causes?
Answer: Virulence
51. An assay using Salmonella typhimurium bacteria to identify carcinogens by measuring bacterial mutagenicity is known by what A-name?
Answer: Ames
52. The highly poisonous blue-ringed octopus warns people to "buzz off" by lighting up super bright rings powered partly by what G-word nucleobase that's in DNA and Monster energy drinks?
Answer: Guanine
53. What “A” term refers to a microorganism that requires oxygen to live and grow?
Answer: Aerobe
54. What “v” is the name of the infectious entities affecting plants that are smaller than viruses and consist only of nucleic acid without a protein coat?
Answer: Viroids
55. Svedbergs, a non-SI unit for sedimentation coefficients, are commonly used to distinguish between which macromolecular machines found within cells? These macromolecular machines are sometimes called Palade granules.
Answer: Ribosomes
56. What is the five-letter name of the neurotoxin produced by the Gram-positive bacterium Clostridium botulinum? This neurotoxin is used for cosmetic purposes?
Answer: Botox
57. Which body of water in Brooklyn is too polluted for humans, but a perfect breeding ground for new microbes?
Answer: Gowanus Canal
58. If an infectious microbe is pyrogenic, that means that it causes what condition, defined by the CDC as a body temperature of more than 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit, in humans?
Answer: Fever
59. In which subdiscipline of microbiology would you study marimo, giant kelp, and other algae?
Answer: Phycology
60. Which type of lymphocyte has enzyme-filled particles inside it that get released during an allergic reaction? (Hint: Their name implies that they stain well—a dark purple—with a basic dye).
Answer: Basophil
61. Hydrolysis is the process of using which substance to break down polymers into smaller molecules? (Hint: The chemical name is H2O!)
Answer: Water
62. Which C-term describes the protective protein coating or “shell” around a virus?
Answer: Capsid
63. What fungal microorganism, thanks to its associations with bread and beer, was likely the first organism "domesticated" by human beings?
Answer: Yeast
64. What kind of gene transfer, which is abbreviated HGT and is the primary cause of antibiotic resistance in bacteria, is the movement of genetic material between organisms that are not parent and offspring?
Answer: Horizontal Gene Transfer
65. You’ve got your organisms with many cells (multicellular) and just one cell (unicellular), so what do you call an organism with no cells?
Answer: Acellular
66. What substance causes an immune response in the body that leads to the production of antibodies?
Answer: Antigen
67. Macrophages are an example of which type of white blood cell that can engulf a pathogen?
Answer: Phagocytes
68. What is the term for the non-protein molecules that an enzyme needs to be a catalyst?
Answer: Cofactor
69. What cellular structure consists of liquid or cytoplasm within a lipid bilayer?
Answer: Vesicle
70. Which term applies to pathogens that have to eat living plant tissue from a host to survive (rather than killing the host’s cells)?
Answer: Biotrophic
71. Austrian pediatrician Theodor Escherich is credited with discovering what disease-bearing bacterium, which still bears his name?
Answer: E. Coli
72. What single-cell organisms comprise the third taxonomic domain, along with Bacteria and Eukaryota? Many of these are extremophiles, living in conditions that would not support other life, such as in hot springs and geysers.
Answer: Archaea
73. What German scientist founded the field of bacteriology in the 19th century? He also developed a classification system for bacteria and discovered endospores.
Answer: Ferdinand Cohn
74. Microorganisms called what are responsible for fixing nitrogen in the soil, in the form of ammonia? This process is vital to allow nitrogen to be available to plants and animals.
Answer: Diazotrophs
75. If it’s got a nucleus in its cells but it’s not an animal, plant, or fungus, what is it? (Hint: Algae and flagellates fall into this category of organism)
Answer: Protist
76. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) uses two metals to stain objects to be scanned. One of them is gold. What is the other?
Answer: Palladium
77. What type of infection is caused by the host’s own microbiome rather than coming from the outside (exogenous)?
Answer: Endogenous
78. What two German scientists invented the first electron microscope in 1931, although the microscope was not sufficiently capable to be sold commercially until 1940?
Answer: Max Knoll and Ernst Ruska
79. What is the name for dinoflagellates that live in symbiotic relationships with various forms of aquatic life, such as corals and jellyfish?
Answer: Zooxanthellae
80. What subdivision of archaea contains both the smallest living cell (1/100th the size of E. coli) and the smallest known genome?
Answer: Nanoarchaeota
81. What portmanteau describes an assemblage of viruses that are associated with a particular ecosystem—for example, the human body?
Answer: Virome
82. When you think about the seasonal symptoms associated with viruses under its umbrella, it makes sense that Orthomyxoviridae would come from the Greek word for “mucus.” Among the genera are A, B, C, and D viruses that infect birds and humans?
Answer: Influenza
83. The genome of a virus is surrounded by a protein coat called a capsid; by what name are the individual protein molecules that make up the capsid known?
Answer: Capsomere
84. Yoshinori Ohsumi won the 2016 Nobel Prize in Medicine for work in uncovering the mechanisms of what process by which the cell degrades and recycles its contents, the name of which comes from the Greek for "self" and "eating"?
Answer: Autophagy
85. What word describes a cluster of genes, including operator and structural genes, under the control of a single "promoter?"
Answer: Operon
86. Although they may also be abundant in fresh waters, Actinomycetota are best known for being found in what environment, where they are vitally important to human life?
Answer: Soil
87. What "D" word refers to bacteria and archaea, like rhizobia and Frankia, that fix atmospheric nitrogen into ammonia and other bioavailable forms?
Answer: Diazotroph
88. A microbiologist at UC Berkeley discovered DNA that had aspects of multiple species of bacteria, and named it after what cybernetic villains of “Star Trek: The Next Generation?” They similarly build their race by assimilating other species into their own.
Answer: Borg
89. Used as a biological marker, green fluorescent proteins (GFPs) were first isolated from what type of marine creature?
Answer: Jellyfish
90. A monotrichous organism has only one of what “F” hairlike appendage that protrudes on the side of a microorganism?
Answer: Flagellum
91. “Micrographia” is the title of a ground-breaking 1665 book written by which English scientist? A law of elasticity is named after this man, a rival of Isaac Newton.
Answer: Robert Hooke
92. Sounding like it might be made of a shiny metal, what is the name of the substance found in chromosomes that is a complex mixture of proteins, DNA, and RNA?
Answer: Chromatin
93. In mycology, what is the term for the threads that make up the mycelium of a fungus, which grow apically—that is, at their tips?
Answer: Hyphae
94. The citric acid cycle, by which respiring organisms release energy stored in fats and proteins, is most often named for what German-British biologist?
Answer: Hans Krebs
95. Robert Hooke was the first person to see cells when he examined what kind of plant tissue under a microscope? These days you might find it most easily in a wine shop.
Answer: Cork
96. What “L” disease is a form of atypical pneumonia caused by its namesake bacteria? It is somewhat unique in disease nomenclature with its use of the “’s” and the word “Disease” in its full name.
Answer: Legionnaires' Disease
97. Which “-phile” would you call an extreme organism that just loves livin’ it up in hot springs and those deep-sea, super-hot vents?
Answer: Thermophile
98. Microbiologists were hired by Warner Bros. Pictures Canada to create a billboard made of growing bacteria in Petri dishes, which spelled the name of what 2011 pandemic-themed movie directed by Steven Soderbergh?
Answer: Contagion
99. In contrast to Gram negative bacteria, Gram positive bacteria have a cell wall with a thicker layer of what substance, which consists of sugars and amino acids?
Answer: Peptidoglycan
100. What is the name of the genetic structure in a cell, typically circular in bacteria, that can replicate independently of the chromosomes and which is commonly used as a vector in genetic engineering?
Answer: Plasmid
101. Often used to measure the mechanical properties of cells, which type of high-resolution microscopy is commonly abbreviated to AFM?
Answer: Atomic force microscopy
102. Which term describes the breaking down of a cell’s membrane after the outer protection has been damaged?
Answer: Lysis
103. Molecules are produced from smaller units by anabolic reactions; what opposite type of metabolic pathway breaks molecules down into smaller units, often oxidizing them to produce energy?
Answer: Catabolic
104. Dutch microbiologist Martinus Beijerinck is credited with the discovery of what microorganisms? In 1898 he showed that tobacco mosaic disease was caused by an infectious agent that was smaller than a bacteria.
Answer: Virus
105. What is the name of the taxonomic domain of single-celled organisms that lack cell nuclei, and are distinct from the other two domains of Bacteria and Eukaryota?
Answer: Archaea
106. A team of scientists investigates the effects of a deadly extraterrestrial microorganism in what 1969 Michael Crichton novel with a constellation in its name?
Answer: The Andromeda Strain
107. Because it processes proteins and sends them to different destinations, which organelle found in most eukaryotic cells is sometimes referred to as the “post office of the cell?"
Answer: Golgi apparatus
108. Born in 1822, this French chemist has a type of food preservation process (typically used for items like milk and juice) named after him and is recognized by many as the “Father of bacteriology” and the “Father of microbiology.” Name him.
Answer: Louis Pasteur
109. What is the name of the process by which a substance is surrounded by a portion of cell wall, which then "buds" off to bring that substance into the body of the cell?
Answer: Endocytosis
110. What “P” word describes a group of single-celled eukaryotes, either free-living or parasitic, which feed on organic matter? Historically they were known as “one celled animals” because of their predatory behavior and because they lack plant-like cell walls.
Answer: Protozoa
111. Due to the cultural insensitivity and unclear nature in which the source of the disease originated, monkeypox was officially renamed by the World Health Organization in 2022 to what abbreviated four-letter term?
Answer: Mpox
112. Now placed in the Chlorophyceae class, Xanthophyta is also known as algae that is colored green and what bright color?
Answer: Yellow
113. In molecular biology, "mRNA" stands for "messenger RNA." What does the lowercase t in "tRNA," which is involved in bringing amino acids for protein synthesis, stand for?
Answer: Transfer
114. Which organelle found in most eukaryotic cells is named after an Italian physician with the first name Camillo who discovered it in 1897?
Answer: Golgi apparatus
115. If you wanted to blame a microbe for causing a disease outbreak in the 19th century, you might have used Koch's postulates to prove it. What was the first name of the German doctor the criteria were named for?
Answer: Robert
116. What “B” condition describes the presence of viable bacteria within the blood?
Answer: Bacteremia
117. What 17th century English scientist was the first person to visualize a microorganism, using a microscope?
Answer: Robert Hooke
118. What trapping agent is used in Gram staining to inhibit the decolorization of stained bacteria?
Answer: Lugol's iodine
119. Also known as water bears or moss piglets, what eight-legged micro-animal has a name that means "slow stepper" in Latin?
Answer: Tardigrade
120. Halophiles are bacteria that need high concentrations of what mineral to survive? They are examples of extremophiles, capable of living under conditions that would not support most life.
Answer: Salt
121. What German scientist, who discovered the causative agents of tuberculosis, cholera, and anthrax, is known (along with Louis Pasteur) as the "Father of Microbiology?"
Answer: Robert Koch
122. Based on a 1962 short film called "La Jetée", what 1995 sci-fi film revolves around a man being sent back in time to help discover a cure for a deadly virus known as Kalavirus?
Answer: 12 Monkeys
123. Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease and kuru are nasty diseases believed to be caused by what misfolded P-word proteins?
Answer: Prions
124. Which bacterium can survive refrigeration temperatures, is often linked to foodborne illness outbreaks involving raw milk, ice cream, cheese, and deli meats, and is especially dangerous for pregnant people because it can cross the placenta and infect a fetus?
Answer: Listeria
125. Diazotrophs are microorganisms, including bacteria and archaea, that conduct nitrogen fixation in soil, turning it into what colorless gas?
Answer: Ammonia
126. Frequently used in research laboratories, roundworms are also known by what name derived from the Greek for "thread?"
Answer: Nematode
127. What is the term for bacteremia that develops into a potentially life-threatening invasion of the bloodstream by bacteria and their toxins, accompanied by acute systemic illness?
Answer: Septicemia
128. The EPV virus is named after Yvonne Barr and a British pathologist. What is the surname of this pathologist? This pathologist shares his surname with the manager of The Beatles.
Answer: Epstein
129. Also known as bacterial sex, what gene transfer mechanism involves transfer of DNA from a donor to a recipient bacterium by direct contact?
Answer: Conjugation
130. What genus of anaerobic bacterium, whose name comes from a Latin word for "spindle," causes both botulism and tetanus?
Answer: Clostridium
131. Pathogenic species of what genus of bacteria are responsible for African tick-bite fever, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, and typhus?
Answer: Rickettsia
132. What fungal mold was named by an Italian priest and chemist in 1729, because under a microscope it reminded him of a holy water sprinkler, whose Latin name he gave to the mold?
Answer: Aspergillus
133. Coming after the discovery of viruses affecting tobacco plants and livestock, what disease was caused by the first virus to be discovered that affected humans?
Answer: Yellow fever
134. Complete and independent viral particles, when not inside an infected cell or in the process of infecting a cell, are known by what name?
Answer: Virions
135. Often found in freshwater habitats, what is the name of the type of single-celled protist known for its slipper shape and covering of short hairy structures called cilia?
Answer: Paramecium
136. What kind of “-ation” uses ultrasonic sound to make a cell’s membrane easier to permeate? For example, it can be used to help get big molecules like drugs and DNA into a cell.
Answer: Sonoporation
137. What “P” “-ology” describes the study eukaryotic organisms that do not classify as plant, animal or fungus? Its prefix sounds like it is in favor of things.
Answer: Protistology
138. In the 1920s, researchers named what genus of bacteria, which can cause meningitis and sepsis in humans, after the "father of sterile surgery?"
Answer: Listeria
139. Micropia, a museum that houses exhibits focused on microbes, is located in which city Benelux city? The museum is adjacent to the city’s zoo, Artis.
Answer: Amsterdam
140. Diatoms, amoebae, and dinoflagellates are examples of which type of simple eukaryotic organisms that don’t fit into the classification of plants, animals, or fungi?
Answer: Protists
141. Which Scottish physician and microbiologist won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1945 for the discovery of a fungus that has been called the "single greatest victory ever achieved over disease"?
Answer: Alexander Fleming
142. Different fungi reproduce by different means—which type reproduces by means of budding?
Answer: Yeasts
143. What is the part of the cell cycle in which chromosomes which have replicated themselves separate to form two new nuclei? This is followed by the division of the cell into two identical daughter cells.
Answer: Mitosis
144. Thiomargarita magnifica is the largest of what kind of microorganism (truly a misnomer) scientists have ever seen? (And it really was SEEN when they discovered it in 2022—the single cell is about as big as a housefly!)
Answer: Bacteria
145. Which light-producing enzyme can occur naturally in organisms such as fireflies?
Answer: Luciferase
146. Antonie van Leeuwenhoek, the "father of microbiology," is among other things credited with being the first person to use a histological stain, using what yellow spice?
Answer: Saffron
147. Slime molds are organisms that have characteristics of molds and what other microorganisms? Under certain circumstances, slime molds can exist as cytoplasm, resembling amoebas.
Answer: Protozoa
148. The first published photograph of bacteria was made in 1877 by German physician and microbiologist Robert Koch. The bacteria in question causes what disease?
Answer: Anthrax
Water Cooler Trivia is well-equipped to provide you with exciting and engaging trivia quizzes.
So, how does it work?
Each week, our team will deliver original trivia quizzes straight to your inbox.
All you have to do is pick the categories.
You can leave the rest of the heavy lifting to us.
Take Water Cooler Trivia for a test run with our four-week free trial.
We do everything we can to ensure that Water Cooler Trivia's questions are appropriate, relevant, and accurate. Our database has tens of thousands of questions, so we don't always get it right. If you see a question that needs editing, we would love if you let us know here or email quizmaster@watercoolertrivia.com.
.png)