Questions

Q1.

Farmers sometimes use biological control to reduce the damage to their crops caused by pests such as insects.
(a) Which of these is an advantage of using biological control over chemical control?
(1)
A it lasts a short time
B it leads to bioaccumulation
C it is specific
D it is quicker

(b) Aphids are tiny insects that have very sharp mouthparts. They push these mouthparts into the phloem found in
stems. They then feed on the phloem contents.

(i) Name two substances the aphids obtain from the phloem.
(2)
1 ..........................................................................................................................................
2 ..........................................................................................................................................

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 (ii) Explain how aphids feeding from the phloem of crop plants can lead to a reduction in yield.
(4)
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(c) Silverflies and hoverflies are two species of insects whose larvae feed on aphids.
Scientists investigate the feeding behaviour of these species in a laboratory experiment.
This is the scientists' method.

· place a single silverfly in a container

· place a single hoverfly in a separate container
· keep the containers at 12 °C
· put 30 aphids in each container
· count the number of aphids consumed each day for several days
· determine the mean number of aphids consumed per day
The scientists repeat the method at two higher temperatures.
The graph shows the scientists' results.

The scientists conclude that the hoverfly is the most effective biological control agent for aphids.

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 Discuss the scientists' conclusion, referring to information in the graph and the scientists' method in your answer.
(5)
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(Total for question = 12 marks)

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Q2.

Read the passage below. Use the information in the passage and your own knowledge to answer the questions that
follow.

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(a) Name the type of cell that produces antibodies. (Lines 8 and 9)
(1)
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(b) Human blood groups are controlled by three alleles, IA, IB and IO.
The IA and IB alleles are codominant and the IO allele is recessive.
(i) State what is meant by the term codominant.
(1)
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(ii) Two parents have genotypes of IAIO and IBIO.
Which of these are all the possible blood groups of their children?
(1)
A A and B
B A, B and O
C AB and O
D A, B, AB and O

(c) Calculate the number of blood donations collected per year from the high-income countries. (Lines 14 and 15)
Give your answer in standard form.
(2)

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(d) Some scientists have suggested that spherical artificial red blood cells transport oxygen less efficiently than
normal human red blood cells.

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 Explain why the shape of the artificial red blood cells reduces the efficiency of oxygen transport compared to
normal human red blood cells. (Lines 18 and 19)(3)
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(e) Suggest why artificial blood does not clot when stored. (Lines 26 and 27)(1)
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(f) Explain why the artificial red blood cells are suspended in sodium chloride solution instead of in water. (Line 20)
(2)
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(g) (i) Explain why stem cells can be used to make large quantities of red blood cells. (Lines 22 and 23)(2)
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(ii) Suggest why the scientists made red blood cells with blood group O. (Lines 22 and 23)(2)
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(h) Give two substances found in blood plasma that are not present in the artificial blood. (Lines 28 and 29)(2)
1 ..........................................................................................................................................
2 ..........................................................................................................................................

(Total for question = 17 marks)

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Q3.

The diagram shows a plant cell in distilled water and a plant cell in a concentrated solution of sodium chloride.

(a) (i) Which structure is labelled M?

(1)
A cell membrane
B cell wall
C nucleus
D vacuole

(ii) Which structure is labelled N?

(1)
A cell membrane
B cell wall
C cytoplasm
D vacuole

(b) (i) Give the name of the liquid found in the gap labelled O in the cell in the concentrated solution of sodium
chloride.
(1)
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 (ii) Explain the differences in the appearance of the cell in distilled water and the cell in the concentrated solution
of sodium chloride.
(4)
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(c) Describe an experiment you could do to show how different concentrations of sodium chloride solution affect the
appearance of plant cells.
(4)
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(Total for question = 11 marks)

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Q4.

A teacher carries out a demonstration to show the effect of different concentrations of salt solution on red blood
cells.
This is the teacher's method.

· dilute a sample of blood using a salt solution that has the same concentration as blood plasma
· place 1 cm3 of the diluted blood into each of three test tubes labelled A, B and C
· add 10 cm3 of water to tube A
· add 10 cm3 of 1% sodium chloride solution to tube B
· add 10 cm3 of 5% sodium chloride solution to tube C
· leave each tube for 5 minutes
· compare the cloudiness of the solutions in the three test tubes
· take a drop of liquid from each tube and put on separate microscope slides
· observe each slide under a microscope
(a) State the independent variable in this investigation.
(1)
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(b) Give one variable that the teacher controls in this investigation.
(1)
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(c) After 5 minutes, these are the teacher's observations.

· tube A – a clear red solution

· tube B – a cloudy red suspension
· tube C – a cloudy red suspension
(i) Explain the differences in the teacher's observations.
(2)
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(ii) When the teacher looks down a microscope for cells on each slide, these are the teacher's observations.

· slide from tube A – no cells are seen

· slide from tube B – normal biconcave red cells are seen
· slide from tube C – red cells are seen but the cells have shrunken edges
The photographs show the teacher's observations.

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 Explain the differences between the teacher's observations of the slides from each tube.
(2)
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(d) Blood samples can be separated into different layers using a centrifuge.
This is a machine that spins blood at a high speed.
A new sample of blood is shown after it has been spun in a centrifuge.

Describe how the blood in tubes A, B and C from the teacher's demonstration would look after they had been
spun in a centrifuge.
(2)
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(Total for question = 8 marks)

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Q5.

Read the passage below. Use the information in the passage and your own knowledge to answer the questions that
follow.
Supercharging plants to reduce global warming

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(a) (i) Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas.
State the name of another greenhouse gas (line 7).
(1)
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(ii) Calculate the increase in mass, in kg, of atmospheric carbon dioxide in 2020 (lines 2 to 7).
Give your answer in standard form.
[1 gigatonne = 1 000 000 000 000 kg]
(3)

Increase in mass = ........................................................... kg

(iii) State two consequences of global warming for the environment.
(2)
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(b) Explain why producing genetically engineered plants with additional suberin in their roots could reduce
atmospheric carbon dioxide (lines 14 to 17 and lines 19 to 24).
(4)
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(c) Which enzyme is used to remove a gene from a section of DNA?
(1)
A amylase
B ligase
C lipase
D restriction

(d) Explain why the additional suberin in the cell walls of the roots will make the transgenic plants tolerant to soil
with a high salt concentration (lines 26 to 28).
(2)
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(e) Give three reasons why the scientists use micropropagation to reproduce the transgenic crop plants (lines 24 to
25).
(3)
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(Total for question = 16 marks)

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Q6.

Read the passage below. Use the information in the passage and your own knowledge to answer the questions that
follow.
Human kidney disease

(a) Give one way that a person can change their diet to lower their risk of developing high cholesterol (lines 4 to 6).
(1)
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(b) One function of the kidney is excretion (line 9). Another function is osmoregulation.
Explain what is meant by the term osmoregulation.(2)
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(c) Explain why a person with severe kidney disease will need dialysis to continue for life (lines 15 to 16).(2)
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(d) The peritoneum acts as a partially permeable membrane.
(i) Explain what is meant by a partially permeable membrane (lines 23 to 24).(2)
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(ii) Explain why the dialysis solution must contain purified water, glucose and mineral ions (lines 19 to 21).(2)
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(e) Explain how the composition of the dialysis solution results in the waste products being removed from the blood
(lines 21 to 22).
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(f) (i) A person is using APD.
Calculate the percentage of their time used for treatment in a week (lines 33 to 35).
(2)

percentage = ........................................................... %
(ii) Suggest why people may prefer to use CAPD instead of haemodialysis (lines 31 to 32).
(1)
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(g) Describe how the structures in a human kidney result in the correct substances being retained in the blood.
(3)
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(Total for question = 17 marks)

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Q7.

The diagram shows a magnified image of a root hair cell from a young plant.

(a) Give the names of structures labelled W, X, Y and Z.(4)

W ..........................................................................................................................................
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(b) The actual length of the cell, along the line between A and B, is 1000 μm.
Calculate the magnification of this drawing.
(2)

magnification = ...........................................................
(c) (i) Explain the role of the root hair cell in absorption of water from the soil.
(3)
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(ii) Sometimes gardeners give their plants too much water. The water fills up the air spaces in the soil around
the plant roots.

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 Explain how this can lead to plants failing to grow properly.
(3)
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(Total for question = 12 marks)

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