1. The greatest number of deaths in one year from a single infectious disease occurred during
a)The mid-1300’s
b)The Plague of Justinian
c)The second Punic War
d)World War I
e)World War II

2. Which of these is different from the others (i.e. is not caused by a true pox virus)?
a)Smallpox
b)Cowpox
c)Chickenpox
d)Monkeypox
e)Horsepox

3. The first animal to die of human kuru was
a)Blossom the cow
b)Georgette the chimpanzee
c)Carlton Gajdusek’s pet cat
d)a mouse with no name
e)none of the above; human kuru cannot be transmitted to animals

4. The capsid of a virus that gives the virus a characteristic shape (like a cone, a bullet, an icosahedron, etc.) is made of
a)DNA
b)RNA
c)Proteins
d)Lipids
e)Polysaccharides

5. The absence of large domesticatable animals in the New World at the time of the Spanish Conquest of Central America was most likely caused by
a)Overhunting by native populations, especially after development of the “Clovis point” spear
b)Overhunting for sport by Europeans
c)Disease brought from the Old World as part of the Columbian Exchange
d)Syphilis
e)An Ice Age

6. Which of these would be considered to be a “Prion Disease?”
a)Anthrax
b)Influenza
c)Smallpox
d)Syphilis
e)Scrapie

7. The latent stage of syphilis generally occurs
a)Before primary stage syphilis
b)Between primary and secondary stage syphilis
c)During secondary stage syphilis
d)Between secondary and tertiary stage syphilis
e)After tertiary stage syphilis

8. The demonstration project that eventually changed into the “Tuskeegee Study” was originally designed to demonstrate
a)That syphilis could be transmitted from African Americans to Whites
b)That syphilis was more prevalent in African American populations than in White populations
c)That syphilis was more prevalent in White populations than in African American populations
d)That African American populations would comply with (and respond to) treatment programs effectively
e)That the disease that African American populations in the rural South called “Bad Blood” was actually syphilis

9. Eating hamburger made from a cow with BSE would particularly dangerous if the hamburger included
a)Muscle tissue
b)Nerve tissue
c)Liver
d)Skin and hair
e)Fecal material

10. Influenza viruses are named H1N1 or H3N2 or some such designation.What does the designation “H3N2 influenza” indicate?
a)That there are 3 copies of the H gene and 2 copies of the N gene
b)That both of its surface proteins are different from H1N1 influenza
c)That the H gene is on chromosome 3 and the N gene is on chromosome 2
d)That the ratio of H proteins on the surface to N proteins on the surface is 3:2
e)That its capsid protein and its nucleic-acid-binding protein are both different from the H1N1 influenza

11. When one compares the effects of smallpox on European and Native American populations, it appears that
a)Native American populations are naturally immune and do not die from smallpox
b)Native American populations have a lower mortality than European populations
c)Native American populations have about the same mortality as European populations
d)Native American populations have a higher mortality than European populations
e)Native American populations are so susceptible that there is 100% mortality

12. One of the serious social effects of the kuru epidemic among the Fore people was
a)a power imbalance with women becoming the dominant group in decision making
b)an imbalance in the sex ratio with more men than women
c)a shift from vegetarianism to meat eating, especially among the men
d)a dependence on Western medicine and the decline of native healing practice
e)a significant increase in infanticide as a response to the perceived “sorcery” of kuru

13. Which of these is true of all viruses?
a)They use DNA as their genetic material
b)They cannot reproduce unless they get inside a living cell
c)They can escape attack by your immune response
d)They are killed (or inactivated) by high doses of antibiotics
e)They use “reverse transcriptase” to copy their genetic material

14. Mercury was first tried as a cure for syphilis because the symptoms of syphilis were thought to be similar to those of
a)Smallpox
b)Scabies
c)Tuberculosis
d)Measles
e)Cowpox

15. Variant Creutzfeld-Jacob Disease (vCJD) is another name for
a)Variant Kuru
b)Variant scrapie
c)Variant TME
d)Mad cow disease
e)Louping ill

16. With which disease would you associate the name “Wasserman?”
a)Syphilis
b)Influenza
c)Smallpox
d)Variant Creutzfeld-Jakob
e)Measles

17. After the discovery that penicillin is 100% effective in curing syphilis
a)The Tuskeegee Study stopped and all participants were treated with penicillin
b)The Tuskeegee Study stopped and the participants were left alone to find treatment (or not) on their own,
c)The Tuskeegee Study continued with no treatment offered and with treatment denied to those who sought it
d)The Tuskeegee Study became an issue of intense controversy that remained unresolved for more than ten years
e)The Tuskeegee Institute closed it doors and ended treatment

18. A prion is composed of
a)DNA alone
b)RNA and DNA (in the form of a hybrid)
c)Protein alone
d)A nucleic acid surrounded by a protein shell
e)Antibodies and antigens

19. Avian Influenza (H5N1) should worry us in the USA because
a)we have no immunity to it and no vaccine
b)it has already killed over 10,000 people in Asia
c)it is especially infectious in person-to-person transfer
d)it can be transmitted by insect bites
e)it is not inactivated by temperatures used in cooking chicken and duck

20. The name most likely to be associated with smallpox is
a)Edward Jenner
b)Robert Koch
c)John Snow
d)George Soper
e)Carlton Gajdusek

21. The “host specificity” (the kind of organism or cell that a virus will infect) is determined
a)By structures inside the capsid
b)By structures protruding from the outermost layer of the virus
c)By whether the genetic material of the virus is DNA, RNA, or protein
d)By the size of the virus
e)By the temperature of the environment

22. Historians are often surprised that (before 1492) the people of the New World did not
a)Use the wheel
b)Build with stone
c)Work with gold as a metal
d)Eat meat
e)Have cities larger than 10 or 20 thousand

23. In the 1920’s and early 1930’s, the educational films developed by the Army to reduce the spread of venereal diseases
a)Were shown to male students but not to female students in health classes
b)Were widely used in high school health classes for both sexes
c)Were banned by law in most states as pornographic
d)Were of little use because there was no way yet to manufacture an effective latex condom
e)Actually increased the spread of syphilis and other venereal diseases by promoting sexual promiscuity

24. Anecdotal reports suggest that American hunters should beware because
a)Many rabbits are infected with a transmissible encephalopathy
b)Most wild birds are susceptible to prion diseases
c)Many deer herds are infected with chronic wasting disease
d)Many bears, especially brown bears, carry a form of Mad Cow disease
e)North American elk are carriers of Louping-ill

25. In a “Complement Fixation” assay, if the complement in a sample is “fixed” that means that
a)It is used up and cannot punch holes in tester cells
b)It is fully active and can punch holes in tester cells
c)It is able to repair holes punched in cell membranes by antibodies
d)It can not be increased or decreased by any standard treatment
e)It is from a species other than human

26. The Tuskeegee Study took place
a)In the rural South
b)In the urban North
c)On the west coast
d)In one county in each state
e)In high school classes

27. Which part of the body would be affected if you had an “encephalitis?”
a)Skin
b)Liver
c)Brain
d)Lungs
e)Genitals