1

Microbiology – Parasitology

1. Two methods which may be used to determine motility are:

a. Hanging drop and motility medium
b. Hanging drop and Gram stain
c. Motility medium and simple stain
d. Gram stain and motility medium

2. The principle of the autoclave for sterilization is based upon:

a. Dry heat with pressure of 15 pounds at 120OC for 15 minutes
b. Moist heat at 120OC for 15 minutes
c. Moist heat at 120OC, under pressure of 15 pounds for 15 minutes
d. Dry heat at 120OC, for 15 minutes

3. Name in order the four ingredients of Hucker’s modification of Gram

stain:
a. Crystal violet, 95% alcohol, iodine, safranin
b. Iodine, crystal violet, 95% alcohol, safranin
c. Crystal violet, 95% alcohol, safranin, iodine
d. Crystal violet, iodine, 95% alcohol, safranin

4. A throat swab is submitted for anaerobic culture. This specimen should

be:
a. Set up immediately
b. Rejected
c. Inoculated into thioglycollate broth
d. Sent to a reference laboratory

5. The general guidelines for collection of blood cultures state:

a. Disinfect skin with an alcohol swab only
b. Large amounts of bacteria are required to cause bacteremia
c. Two to three sets per 24 hours are usually sufficient to diagnose
bacteremia
d. One specimen per 24 hours is sufficient to diagnose bacteremia

6. In preparing blood agar plates for determining hemolytic patterns of

Streptococci, what is the first choice of whole blood?
a. Horse
b. Sheep
c. Rabbit
d. Human

7. A positive test using Simmon’s citrate agar slants, showing alkaline

reaction and utilization of citrate would be indicated by the following
color:
a. Orange
b. Yellow
c. Red
d. Blue
 2

8. On tellurite medium, the colonies of Corynebacterium diphtheriae are

opaque, raised, convex and:
a. White
b. Cream-colored
c. Green
d. Gun metal in color

9. Which of the following is a suitable medium for the cultivation of

Brucella abortus:
a. Colistin-Irgasan-Novobiocin medium
b. Loeffler’s serum medium
c. Trypticase soy broth and agar
d. Cystine-tellurite-blood agar

10. Glycerin-potato-blood agar is also called:

a. Bordet-Gengou medium
b. Regan-Lowe agar
c. Petragnani’s medium
d. Thayer-Martin agar

11. Mycoplasma differ from other bacteria in that they:

a. Are thermophilic
b. Lack a rigid cell wall
c. Are pleomorphic and more sensitive to changes in osmotic pressure
d. Need serum for growth

12. The term that best describes the location of flagella which entirely
surrounds the bacteria is:
a. Atrichous
b. Monotrichous
c. Amphitrichous
d. Peritrichous

13. Which genera of bacteria form spores?

1. Bacillus 3. Nocardia
2. Corynebacterium 4. Clostridium
a. 1 and 3
b. 1 and 4
c. 2 and 3
d. 2 and 4

14. Which of the following is NOT Gram-negative?

a. Peptococcus
b. Salmonella
c. Branhamella
d. Aeromonas
 3

15. The Fite-Faraco acid fast stain is different from other acid-fast
stains because it uses:
a. Hematoxylin rather than methylene blue as a counterstain
b. Carbol gentian violet rather than safranin as a counterstain
c. Malachite green rather than hematoxylin as a counterstain
d. India ink with no counterstain

16. “Medusa head” colonies are a characteristic of:

a. Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae
b. Bacillus anthracis
c. Clostridium perfringens
d. Streptobacillus moniliformis

17. Colonies described as “Mercury droplets” are a characteristic of:

a. Brucella spp.
b. Bartonella henselae
c. Bordetella pertussis
d. Legionella pneumophila

18. What substance is responsible for the red pigmentation of Serratia

marcescens?
a. Pyocyanin
b. Violacein
c. Prodigiosin
d. Staphyloxanthin

19. Which of the following is a photochromogen?

a. Mycobacterium tuberculosis
b. Mycobacterium marinum
c. Mycobacterium szulgai
d. Mycobacterium fortuitum-chelonei

20. A yellow pigment-producing organism that is oxidase positive,

nonmotile and does not grow on MacConkey agar is:
a. Acinetobacter calcoaceticus
b. Acinetobacter lwoffi
c. Pseudomonas cepacia
d. Flavobacterium meningosepticum

21. If the negative nitrate reduction test does not change color after the
powdered zinc is added, how is it reported?
a. Positive
b. Doubtful
c. Negative
d. Do not report
 4

22. An organism isolated from a stool culture has the following reactions:
Gram-negative rod TSI = K/A, no gas, no H2
Urease negative Lysine decarboxylase negative
PAD negative Nonmotile
What could be the possible organism present?
a. Salmonella typhi
b. Proteus mirabilis
c. Shigella spp.
d. Citrobacter freundii

23. Which of the following is the reagent used for the string test?
a. Methyl red
b. Bromthymol blue
c. 6.5% NaCl
d. 0.5% Sodium desoxycholate

24. Why should thioglycollate broth be boiled for 10 minutes before being
used?
a. To drive off oxygen
b. To drive off hydrogen
c. To activate the thioglycollate
d. To deactivate the thioglycollate

25. Any organism that is indole-positive and nitrate reduction-positive is

also:
a. ONPG positive
b. Cholera red positive
c. Ornithine decarboxylase negative
d. Phenylalanine deaminase positive

26. What is the indicator in Simmons citrate agar?

a. Phenol red
b. Bromthymol blue
c. Bromcresol purple
d. Neutral red

27. Amino acids used in the decarboxylase test:

a. Cadaverine, putrescine, ornithine
b. Ornithine, arginine, cadaverine
c. Lysine, ornithine, arginine
d. Arginine, putrescine, cadaverine

28. The Vogues-Proskauer test detects the production of:

a. Phenylalanine
b. Decarboxylase activity
c. p-dimethylaminobenzaldehyde
d. Acetylmethylcarbinol
 5

29. The Weil-Felix is a serologic agglutination test which aids in the

laboratory diagnosis of:
a. Chlamydiae infections
b. Rare parasitic infections
c. Typhoid fever
d. Rickettsial infections

30. A positive Simmon’s citrate test is seen as a:

a. Blue color in the medium after 24-hour incubation period at 35OC
b. Red color in the medium after 18-hour incubation period at 35OC
c. Yellow color in the medium after 24-hour incubation at 35OC
d. Green color in the medium after 18-hour incubation at 35OC

31. Which single test best separates Klebsiella oxytoca from Klebsiella
pneumoniae?
a. Urease
b. Sucrose
c. Citrate
d. Indole

32. What are the most appropriate screening tests to presumptively

differentiate and identify the nonfermentative Gram-negative bacilli from
the Enterobacteriaceae?
a. Catalase, decarboxylation of arginine, growth on blood agar
b. Motility, urease, morphology on blood agar
c. Oxidase, TSI, nitrate reduction, growth on MacConkey agar
d. Oxidase, indole, and growth on blood agar

33. Cetrimide agar is used as a selective isolation agar for which

organism?
a. Acinetobacter spp.
b. Pseudomonas aeruginosa
c. Moraxella spp.
d. Stenotrophomonas maltophilia

34. Which of the following is the best rapid, noncultural test to perform
when Gardnerella vaginalis is suspected in a patient with vaginosis?
a. 10% KOH test
b. 3% H2O2 test
c. 30% H2O2 test
d. All of these

35. Which test is performed in order to confirm an infection with

Clostridium botulinum?
a. Toxin neutralization
b. Spore forming test
c. Lipase test
d. Gelatin hydrolysis test
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36. The classic toxigenic strains of which serogroup are implicated in

epidemic infections of Vibrio cholerae?
a. O1
b. O2
c. O3
d. O4

37. A positive OX-K and negative OX-2 and OX-19 in the Weil-Felix test are
associated with:
a. Rickettsial pox
b. Trench fever
c. Scrub typhus
d. Murine typhus

38. The pH of the agar used for the Kirby-Bauer test should be:
a. 7.0-7.2
b. 7.2-7.4
c. 7.4-7.6
d. 7.6-7.8

39. Metronidazole is most commonly recommended for treatment of infections

caused by:
a. Aerobic microorganisms
b. Microaerophilic microorganisms
c. Obligate anaerobic microorganisms
d. Obligate intracellular microorganisms

40. Which of the following drugs inhibit folic acid synthesis?

a. Vancomycin
b. Chloramphenicol
c. Trimethoprim-Sulfamethoxazole
d. Isoniazid

41. Drugs incorporated in New York City medium, EXCEPT:

a. Vancomycin
b. Colistin
c. Anisomycin
d. Amphotericin B

42. Milk that is not adequately pasteurized may be detected by:

a. Sediment test
b. Phosphatase test
c. Methylene blue reduction test
d. Plate count

43. In the bacteriological analysis of water, the confirmed test consists

of:
a. Demonstration of Gram-negative, non-sporulating rods from an agar
slant
b. Gas in a lactose tube
c. Typical coliform colonies on EMB agar plates
d. Acid and gas in lactose tubes
 7

44. The Gram-positive non-spore-forming anaerobic rods most frequently

recovered from blood cultures as a contaminant are:
a. Propionibacterium acnes
b. Clostridium noyvii
c. Staphylococcus epidermidis
d. Veillonella parvula

45. Which of the following anaerobes produce black pigment and brick red
fluorescence when exposed to an ultraviolet light source?
a. Prevotella and Veillonella
b. Veillonella and Porphyromonas
c. Prevotella and Porphyromonas
d. All of the above

46. Growth inhibition by thiophene-2-carboxylic acid hydrazide is used to

differentiate Mycobacterium tuberculosis from which other Mycobacterium
spp?
a. M. kansasii
b. M. bovis
c. M. marinum
d. M. avium-intracellulare

47. Which of the following Mycobacterium spp. would be most likely to grow
on a MacConkey agar plate?
a. M. ulcerans
b. M. fortuitum-chelonei
c. M. xenopi
d. M. avium-intracellulare

48. Spirochetes often detected in hematology laboratory, even before the

physician suspects the infection, are:
a. Borrelia spp
b. Treponema spp
c. Leptospira spp
d. All of these

49. Which of the following diseases can be acquired via inhalation?

a. Trench fever
b. Scrub typhus
c. Oroya fever
d. Q fever

50. Which of the following acts as a clearing agent to eliminate debris

and make fungal elements more prominent in skin, hair and nails?
a. Lactophenol cotton blue
b. 10% KOH
c. 70% alcohol
d. Ether
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51. Which of the following are produced by Geotrichum candidum?

a. Rectangular, evenly staining arthroconidia
b. Small, budding yeast cells
c. Cigar-shaped yeast cells
d. Tuberculate macroconidia

52. Which of the following organisms can be identified by its fluorescence

under Wood’s lamp?
a. Trichophyton rubrum
b. Trichophyton tonsurans
c. Microsporum canis
d. Epidermophyton floccosum

53. Which fungus medium is used for the primary isolation and maintenance
of fungal cultures?
a. Saboraud’s dextrose agar
b. Cornmeal agar
c. Staib’s medium
d. Rice agar

54. Which of the following media identifies species of Aspergillus?

a. Cottonseed medium
b. Rice agar
c. Czapek’s agar
d. Nigerseed agar

55. Which of the following viruses causes acute CNS disease in humans and
animals?
a. Influenza
b. Mumps
c. Measles
d. Rabies

56. Which virus has been implicated in adult gastroenteritis resulting

from ingestion of contaminated food and water?
a. Rotavirus
b. Norwalk-like virus
c. Coronavirus
d. Hepatitis C virus

57. Which technique is most widely used for the confirmation of infection
with HIV-1?
a. PCR
b. ELISA
c. Complement fixation
d. Western blot

58. Rhinoviruses grow best at what temperature?

a. 25OC
b. 33OC
c. 37OC
d. 42OC
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59. In capnophilic incubators, CO2 concentrations should be maintained

between:
a. 1% and 5%
b. 5% and 10%
c. 10% and 15%
d. 15% and 20%

60. Rapid methods for identifying classic infection with Mycobacterium

tuberculosis include:
a. Gas-liquid chromatography
b. Acid-fast smears
c. Nucleic acid probes
d. All of the above

61. Which of the following is true about biosafety cabinet class II?
a. It filters exhausted air only
b. It supplies and exhausts air thru HEPA filter
c. It filters recirculated and exhausted air
d. It is only accessible through glove ports

62. What is the most important personal protective equipment for

microbiology laboratories performing tests for Mycobacterium tuberculosis?
a. Carbon cartridge respirator
b. Mask
c. Gloves
d. N95 HEPA filter respirator

63. Classification of viruses is made by:

a. Complement fixation
b. Electron microscopy
c. Nucleic acid composition
d. Cellular inclusion bodies

64. Which of the following is used for quality control for the dry heat
oven?
a. Bacillus subtilis
b. Bacillus stearothermophilus
c. Bacillus thermophilus
d. Bacillus anthracis

65. Iodophors are composed of iodine and:

a. Detergents
b. Phenolic compounds
c. 70% alcohol
d. 95% alcohol
 10

66. What is the method of choice for the recovery of anaerobic bacteria
from a deep abscess?
a. Cotton fiber swab of the abscess area
b. Skin snip of the surface tissue
c. Needle aspirate after surface decontamination
d. Swab of the scalpel used for debridement

67. Specimens for virus culture should be transported in media containing:

a. Antibiotics and 5% sheep blood
b. Saline and 5% sheep blood
c. 22% bovine albumin
d. Antibiotics and nutrient medium

68. The proper collection of specimens for dermatophytes from the skin
includes:
a. Area cleansed with soap and swabbed with cotton applicator
b. Area cleansed with 70% alcohol and swabbed with cotton applicator
c. Scrape tissue with scalpel from center of infected area
d. Area cleansed with 70% alcohol and scraped from the border with
scalpel

69. A laboratorian, properly dressed in white pants, laboratory coat, and

shoes, prepares to leave the laboratory for lunch. In addition to washing
his hands, he should:
a. Put on safety goggles
b. Remove his laboratory coat
c. Wipe the bench with water
d. Remove polyvinyl gloves and place them into labcoat pocket for
future use

70. How does biological safety cabinet class 2A differ from BSC class 2B?
a. Class 2A exhausts HEPA filtered air into the room
b. Class 2B exhausts HEPA filtered air into the room
c. Class 2B cabinets are larger
d. Class 2A cabinets contain gas jets for a Bunsen burner

71. The helminth that induces a microcytic hypochromic anemia in its host
is:
a. Strongyloides stercoralis
b. Ancylostoma duodenale
c. Diphyllobothrium latum
d. Enterobius vermicularis

72. Which of the following nematodes are associated with heart to lung
migration?
a. Necator americanus
b. Ascaris lumbricoides
c. Strongyloides stercoralis
d. All of these
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73. All of these parasites are sheathed, EXCEPT:

a. Wuchereria bancrofti
b. Loa loa
c. Onchocerca volvulus
d. Brugia malayi

74. Cutaneous larva migrans or creeping eruption is caused by:

a. Enterobius vermicularis
b. Brugia malayi
c. Ancylostoma caninum
d. Toxocara canis

75. Which of the following causes a chronic cough, pulmonary and artery
obstruction but no invasion of the heart in humans?
a. Canine heartworm
b. Pudoc worm
c. Dog hookworm
d. Herring’s worm

76. What is a schistosomule?

a. Cercariae
b. Cercariae minus tail
c. Free-swimming cercariae
d. Metacercariae

77. Examination of sputum may be necessary to diagnose infection with:

a. Paragonimus westermani
b. Trichinella spiralis
c. Fasciola hepatica
d. Wuchereria bancrofti

78. The miracidial hatching test helps to demonstrate the viability of

eggs of:
a. Tapeworms
b. Blood flukes
c. Hookworms
d. Liver flukes

79. It the smallest but deadliest fluke of man:

a. Garrison’s fluke
b. Von Siebold’s fluke
c. Sheep liver fluke
d. Chinese liver fluke

80. Snails with a scientific name of Oncomelania quadrasi is an

intermediate host of:
a. Fasciolopsis buski
b. Paragonimus westermani
c. Schistosoma japonicum
d. Echinostoma ilocanum
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81. Which of the following tapeworms has an unarmed scolex?

a. Hymenolepis nana
b. Taenia saginata
c. Taenia solium
d. Dipylidium caninum

82. Cestode associated with neurocysticercosis:

a. Diphyllobothrium latum
b. Taenia saginata
c. Taenia solium
d. Hymenolepis diminuta

83. A hexacanth embryo enclosed in a radially striated shell belongs to

the genus:
a. Diphyllobothrium
b. Taenia
c. Trichuris
d. Ascaris

84. Infective stage of Diphyllobothrium latum to humans:

a. Plerocercoid
b. Cysticercus
c. Embryonated egg
d. Coracidium

85. This is considered as the shortest tapeworm which possesses only 3

segments:
a. Hymenolepis nana
b. Echinococcus granulosus
c. Hymenolepis diminuta
d. Diphyllobothrium latum

86. This amebic cyst has an average size of 6 to 8 μm and is usually

spherical. When mature, it has 4 nuclei but immature cysts with one or two
nuclei are often seen. The nuclei have fine, uniform granules of
peripheral chromatin and small discrete, usually central karyosomes.
Chromatoidal bars with bluntly rounded ends are sometimes present. This
amebic cyst is most likely:
a. Endolimax nana
b. Entamoeba hartmanni
c. Entamoeba coli
d. Entamoeba histolytica

87. Granulomatous amebic encephalitis and keratitis are usually caused by:
a. Acanthamoeba culbertsoni
b. Naegleria fowleri
c. Angiostrongylus cantonensis
d. Pseudomonas aeruginosa
 13

88. In which type of malaria can Ziemann’s stippling be found?

a. Vivax
b. Malariae
c. Ovale
d. Falciparum

89. In the laboratory diagnosis of Leishmania donovani, which is the

preferred specimen in which to find Leishman-Donovan bodies?
a. Blood
b. Vaginal secretions
c. CSF
d. Bone marrow

90. Steatorrhea and Gay bowel syndrome are associated with what parasite?
a. Trichomonas hominis
b. Chilomastix mesnili
c. Giardia lamblia
d. Trypanosoma cruzi

91. Causative agent of “crabs”

a. Sarcoptes scabei
b. Pthirus pubis
c. Musca domestica
d. Periplaneta Americana

92. The incorrect match between method and method objective is:
a. Direct wet examination and detection of organism motility
b. Knott concentration and the recovery of operculated helminth eggs
c. Baermann concentration and the recovery of Strongyloides
d. Permanent stained fecal smear and confirmation of protozoa

93. The formalin-ether (ethyl acetate) concentration procedure for feces

is used to demonstrate:
a. Motility of helminth larvae
b. Protozoan cysts and helminth eggs
c. Formation of amoebic pseudopods
d. Trophozoites

94. Oocysts of Cryptosporidium parvum can be detected in stool specimens

using:
a. Modified Ziehl-Neelsen acid-fast stain
b. Gram stain
c. Trichrome stain
d. Methenamine silver stain

95. Harada-Mori technique is used for:

a. Concentration of worm eggs in feces
b. Staining protozoal cysts
c. Culture of feces to obtain hookworm larvae
d. Staining blood smears
 14

96. Quantitative estimates of worm parasite load can be obtained using:

1. Scotch tape technique 3. Kato technique
2. Stoll dilution technique 4. Fecal smear
a. 1 and 2
b. 2 and 3
c. 2, 3 and 4
d. 2 only

97. Which of the following is a mercury-containing fixative used to

preserve parasites in stool specimens?
a. Formalin
b. Sodium acetate
c. Buffered glycerol
d. Polyvinyl alcohol

98. The preferred specific gravity of zinc sulfate solution for the
flotation method is:
a. 1.01
b. 1.04
c. 1.18
d. 1.48

99. The ideal temperature at which to hold a fecal specimen for more than
1 hour is:
a. Freezer temperature
b. Refrigerator temperature
c. Room temperature
d. Incubator temperature

100. What constitutes a positive result in the Sabin-Feldman dye test?

a. Toxoplasma becomes nonmotile
b. Toxoplasma can no longer be demonstrated as an intracellular
organism
c. Toxoplasma loses its affinity for methylene blue dye
d. The mouse into which the immune serum is injected does not die
from toxoplasmosis
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ANSWER KEY: Microbiology – Parasitology

1. A 21. A 41. C 61. C 81. B

2. C 22. C 42. B 62. D 82. C
3. D 23. D 43. C 63. C 83. B
4. B 24. A 44. A 64. A 84. A
5. C 25. B 45. C 65. A 85. B
6. B 26. B 46. B 66. C 86. B
7. D 27. C 47. B 67. D 87. A
8. D 28. D 48. A 68. D 88. B
9. C 29. D 49. D 69. B 89. D
10. A 30. A 50. B 70. A 90. C
11. B 31. D 51. A 71. B 91. B
12. D 32. C 52. C 72. D 92. B
13. B 33. B 53. A 73. C 93. B
14. A 34. A 54. C 74. C 94. A
15. A 35. A 55. D 75. A 95. C
16. B 36. A 56. B 76. B 96. B
17. C 37. C 57. D 77. A 97. D
18. C 38. B 58. B 78. B 98. C
19. B 39. C 59. B 79. B 99. B
20. D 40. C 60. D 80. C 100. C