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IB BIOLOGY SL - 2024 - PREDICTION EXAMS

May 2024 - Paper 2

PAPER 2
6 Questions 75 mins 50 marks

Paper Question Type Difficulty

Paper 2 All Easy Medium Hard Jump to

--- Section A ---

Question 1 CALCULATOR

[Maximum mark: 16] MEDIUM

Chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) and Bonobos (Pan paniscus) are humans’ closest living primate
relatives. The chimpanzee and bonobo genomes are approximately 98.7 % identical to the human
Mark Scheme
genome. However, studies have shown that chimpanzees have evolved to use and make tools for
foraging food, whilst bonobos use tools less frequently and diversely than chimpanzees. The map
shows their distribution in Western and Central Africa. Video (a)

Video (b)

Video (c)

Video (d)

Video (e)

Video (fi)

Video (fii)

Video (g)

Video (h)

Video (i)

[Source: Adapted from Guy, Cp. (2016, May 24). File: Bonobo vs chimp.png - Wikimedia Commons. Wikimedia Video (j)
commons. Retrieved January 12 , 2024 from URL https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:
Bonobo_vs_chimp.png. Copyright under CC BY 4.0] Check with RV Newton

(a) State the genus of chimpanzees. [1]

(b) Researchers use the distribution of chimpanzees and bonobos as an example of ‘natural
selection that has resulted in speciation’. Explain why this is. [2]

(c) Suggest what evidence researchers may have discovered to support the hypothesis that
 chimpanzees and bonobos share a recent common ancestor. [1]

The chart shows the mean diet compositions of chimpanzees and bonobos.

[Source: Adapted from Masi, S. (2023, September 20). Tool use, or not tool use, that is the question: Is the
necessity hypothesis really inconsequential for the African great apes?. Frontiers. Retrieved January 12 , 2024
from URL https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmamm.2023.1281030/full. Copyright under CC BY
4.0]

(d) Compare and contrast the diets of chimpanzees and bonobos. [3]

The chart shows the mean number of microorganisms that aid in the digestion of cellulose and fibre
in chimpanzees and bonobos.
 [Source: Adapted from Masi, S. (2023, September 20). Tool use, or not tool use, that is the question: Is the
necessity hypothesis really inconsequential for the African great apes?. Frontiers. Retrieved January 12 , 2024
from URL https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmamm.2023.1281030/full. Copyright under CC BY
4.0]

(e) Suggest why the presence of microorganisms that digest cellulose and fibre may be more
beneficial for bonobos than chimpanzees. [1]

(f) (i) State the monomer product of cellulose digestion. [1]

(ii) State what role the substance named in part (i) plays in energy production. [1]

(g) Gorillas live to the North of the Congo River but not to the South. Gorillas are herbivores that
mainly eat leaves and leafy plants. Scientists suggested competition for food may have acted as
a selection pressure for the use of tools by chimpanzees. Suggest how the data in the previous
graphs support this claim. [2]

The graphs below compare the hourly frequency of play session invitations for bonobos and
chimpanzees, over developmental stages: infants, teenagers, and adults. A play session invitation is
when an animal initiates a play session by inviting another animal to play. The bold horizontal line
represents the median and the vertical length of the central box represents the interquartile range.
 [Source: Adapted from Palagi, E., & Cordoni, G. (2012, December 26). The right time to happen: Play
developmental divergence in the two pan species. PLOS ONE. Retrieved January 12 , 2024 from URL
https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0052767#s3. Copyright under CC BY 3.]

(h) Deduce with a reason whether bonobos or chimpanzees have more play session invitations as
teenagers. [1]

The following graph compares the number of play sessions that escalate into overt aggression in
bonobos and chimpanzees, over the developmental stages.

[Source: Adapted from Palagi, E., & Cordoni, G. (2012, December 26). The right time to happen: Play
developmental divergence in the two pan species. PLOS ONE. Retrieved January 12 , 2024 from URL
https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0052767#s3. Copyright under CC BY
3.0]

(i) Calculate the percentage increase in the median between play sessions that escalate into
aggression in infant and teenage chimpanzees. [1]

(j) Using the evidence provided and your own knowledge, suggest why chimpanzees tend to be
more aggressive than bonobos. [2]

Question 2 CALCULATOR
 [Maximum mark: 5] MEDIUM

Congenital leptin deficiency is a genetic disorder caused by mutations in the leptin gene. A
symptom of congenital leptin deficiency is extreme early-onset obesity. The diagram shows a
Mark Scheme
pedigree chart for a family affected by the disease.

Video (ai)

Video (aii)

Video (aiii)

Video (b)

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(a) (i) State the mode of inheritance of congenital leptin deficiency. [2]

(ii) Explain your reasoning for your answer to part (i). [1]

(iii) Deduce the genotype of individual X. [1]

(b) Leptin regulates obesity via a negative feedback mechanism. Define the term ‘negative
feedback’. [1]

Question 3 CALCULATOR
 [Maximum mark: 4] MEDIUM

The diagram shows the results from PCR tests that were conducted on patients to determine who
has been infected with the COVID-19 virus.
Mark Scheme

Video (a)

Video (b)

Video (c)

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[© Revision Village 2023]

(a) Identify which patients have been infected with COVID-19. [1]

Question 4 whether
(b) Explain CALCULATOR
COVID-19 should be treated with antibiotics. [1]

(c) Another disease that affects humans is HIV. State the name of a cell of the immune system that
Theisimage shows MEDIUM
targeted byaHIV.
cladogram for several species of hamster. [2]

Mark Scheme

Video (a)

Video (b)

Video (c)

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[Source: Adapted from Michaplot. (2012, January 4). File: PhodopusCladogram.jpg. Wikipedia. Retrieved
December 04, 2023 from URL https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File.jpg. Copyright under CC BY 3.0]

(a) State what is represented by the letter X. [1]

(b) Other than their positions on the cladogram, explain what information indicates that Phodopus
campbelli and Phodopus sungorus are closely related. [1]

(c) Modern hamsters have small, furry ears. The common ancestor of the hamsters in the
cladogram has been hypothesised to have large, furry ears. Suggest how natural selection
explains these changes. [3]

Question 5 CALCULATOR
Question 5 CALCULATOR

Dopamine acts as both neurotransmitter between synapses and a hormone. Parkinson’s disease is HARD

caused by the death of nerve cells that produce dopamine. To treat Parkinson’s, patients are given
the drug Levodopa.
Mark Scheme

Video (a)

Video (b)

Video (c)

Check with RV Newton

[Source: Adapted from 721tx, M. (2013, October 24). File: L-DOPA-to-dopamine.svg. Wikimedia Commons.
Retrieved December 04, 2023 from URL https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File: L-DOPA-to-dopamine.svg.
Copyright free]

(a) Suggest why Levodopa can be used to treat Parkinson’s disease. [1]

(b) Outline the processes that cause the stimulation and release of dopamine into the synaptic
cleft. [2]

(c) Distinguish between hormones and neurotransmitters. [3]

--- Section B ---

Answer one question only. One additional mark is available for the construction of your answer.

Question 6 CALCULATOR

[Maximum mark: 16] MEDIUM

(a) Distinguish between the structure and location of chromosomes found in eukaryotes and
prokaryotes. [5]
Mark Scheme
(b) Describe the stages of meiosis and how genetically unique, haploid gametes are created during
the process. [7] Video (a)

(c) Explain the information that can be deduced from a human karyogram. [3] Video (b)

Video (c)

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Question 7 CALCULATOR
 [Maximum mark: 16] MEDIUM

(a) Draw the general structure of an amino acid. [3]

(b) Explain the processes in the carbon cycle that are vital for life on Earth. [8] Mark Scheme

(c) Explain why carbon is present in so many biological molecules. [4] Video (a)

Video (b)

Video (c)

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