At the completion of this unit, the student will be able to ...

1. Describe some of the host defense mechanisms against infection.

2. Name the optimal specimen(s) for the laboratory diagnosis of: viral disorders, bacteremia, sexually transmitted diseases, cellulitis, abscesses, fastidious organisms, deep fungal infections, mycobacterial infections, parasitic infections.

3. Describe the signs, symptoms, and pathogenesis of infection with each of the following viruses: influenza, RSV, rubeola, rubella, mumps, rotavirus, yellow fever, varicella-zoster, HSV, EBV, CMV, and HPV.

4. Describe the role of serology and antigen detection in infectious disease diagnosis, particularly with regard to congenital infection with the following: syphilis, CMV, toxoplasmosis, and HIV.

5. Discuss the emergence of drug resistance and methods of laboratory susceptibility testing, especially with regard to vancomycin resistance in enterococci, methicillin resistance in staphylococci, and multiple drug resistance in Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

6. Define the listed Keywords.

7. Be able to recognize, from projected slides, the diseases/processes listed in the Supplemental Image Database.