This set of Food Microbiology Multiple Choice Questions & Answers (MCQs) focuses on “History”.
1. Who is known as ‘The Father of Microbiology’?
a) Robert Hooke
b) Alexander Fleming
c) Robert Koch
d) Antonie Philips van Leeuwenhoek
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Explanation: Leeuwenhoek was the first scientist to see and describe microbes using his self-made microscope in 1676. Robert Hooke was the first person to discover cells. Alexander Fleming is famous for his discovery of penicillin whereas Robert Koch created the Koch’s postulates which connect specific diseases to specific causative microbes.
2. According to Louis Pasteur’s discovery, which organism is responsible for souring of milk?
a) Salmonella
b) Lactobacillus
c) Escherichia coli
d) Rhizobium
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Explanation: Lactobacillus is a harmless bacterium that uses lactose (milk sugar) as an energy sources and synthesizes lactic acid as a by-product. Salmonella is a genus of bacteria that is harmful and causes typhoid, food poisoning, gastroenteritis etc. E. coli bacteria are found in the guts of peoples and animals. Rhizobium is a genus of nitrogen-fixing bacteria.
3. Who disproved the theory of spontaneous generation with the help of red-hot tubes?
a) Theodor Schwann
b) Turbevill Needham
c) Lazzaro Spallanzani
d) John Tyndall
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Explanation: In 1838, Schwann disproved the theory of spontaneous generation after passing air through red-hot tubes, thereby sterilizing it. In 1749, Needham tried to prove the theory of spontaneous generation. Spallanzani disproved this theory by boiling the meat broth and sealing it immediately to prevent contamination. Tyndall showed that boiled infusion can be stored in dust-free air in a box without microbial growth.
4. The organism responsible for sugar fermentation was named Saccharomyces after ‘sugar ______’
a) Bacteria
b) Fungus
c) Algae
d) Protozoa
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Explanation: Saccharomyces comes from two Greek words meaning sugar and fungus. This genus contains many species of yeast. They have the ability to ferment different types of carbohydrates and are used in brewing, medicine etc.
5. Who developed the method of preserving food in steel cans?
a) Francois Nicolas Appert
b) Charles Mitchell
c) Peter Durand
d) Louis Pasteur
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Explanation: Peter Durand is credited with the development of the steel canning method. Charles Mitchell incorporated the metal lining inside the cans to improve the quality and efficiency of food preservation. Francois Nicolas Appert introduced methods to preserve food using the heat from boiling water. Pasteur introduced heating of wine to destroy souring bacteria.
6. Which of the following bacteria does not cause food poisoning?
a) Bacillus cereus
b) Campylobacter jejuni
c) Staphylococcus aureus
d) Acetobacteraceti
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Explanation: Acetobacteraceti is not a human pathogen. It is used in the production of acetic acid. The optimum conditions required for the growth of the bacteria are not provided by the human skin, thus making it safe.
7. _________ Mary was an American cook who was an asymptomatic carrier of the disease.
a) Typhoid
b) Malaria
c) Common Cold
d) Meningitis
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Explanation: Typhoid Mary infected approximately 51 people in her entire career as a cook. A post-mortem result revealed that she had live typhoid bacteria in her gallbladder. There is a suspicion that the bacteria may hid in some immune cells.
8. Escherichia coli can be harmless as well as harmful.
a) True
b) False
Answer: a
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Sanfoundry Global Education & Learning Series – Food Microbiology.
To practice all areas of Food Microbiology, here is complete set of Multiple Choice Questions and Answers.
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