BI 171 - Fourth Exam - 1999

NOTE - the numbers link to related information in the book.  Not all information on old exams is in the new book (so some numbers have no link), and if something looks unfamiliar, you can check to see if it's from a chapter you're supposed to be studying for your current exam.

Multiple Choice.

Place the letter of the choice that best answers the question on the line to the left.
Two Points Each. NOTE: "e" answers are never the correct answer.


_______ 1. Healthy organisms maintain a steady state, with molecular conditions "constant,"
                           a. All the time         b. As conditions change         c. In stable conditions
                           d. Through mitosis             e. When they aren't seeing other organisms


_______ 2. A polar body is used for
                           a. Discarding of chromosome sets 
                           b. Deactivating specific chromosomes
                           c. Pulling chromosomes apart 
                           d. Anchoring cilia and flagella
                           e. Haute couture runway shows


_______ 3. Which types of molecules come in pyrimidine and purine forms?
                           a. Chlorophylls                 b. Protein                 c. Nucleic acid bases
                           d. Carotenoids                         e. The ones filed under "P"


_______ 4. One thing that intron and exon combinations produce is the ability to
                           a. Use different frequencies in photosynthesis
                           b. Produce a variety of proteins from the same gene stretches
                           c. Pair up different sorts of homologous chromosomes
                           d. Move materials in different directions within a cell
                           e. Produce yet more confusion in the typical student


_______ 5. Which would carry a single amino acid?
                           a. Transfer RNA                                b. Ribosomal RNA
                           c. Messenger RNA                            d. Nuclear RNA
                                                e. Amino acid-carrying Barbie


_______6. Experiments with the bread mold Neurospora led to the discovery that
                           a. Alleles were gene variants
                           b. Only DNA was need for accurate information transfer
                           c. Genes could undergo mutations
                           d. Genes determined specific enzymes
                           e. No one thinks that mold researchers are sexy


_______7. A transducer can
                           a. Move molecules                              b. Convert energy forms
                           c. Flip membrane molecules                 d. Reproduce 2 ways
                                   e. Isn't that under my hood somewhere?


_______8. Which DNA sequence mutations tend to have the largest effects on the resulting protein?
                           a. Deletion         b. Substitution         c. Inversion         d. Duplication
                                   e. The ones where they're run over by monster trucks


_______ 9. DNA was hard to confirm as life's coding molecule because it was thought to be
                           a. Too complex             b. Too simple             c. Too unstable
                           d. Too hard to copy                     e. Too boring


_______ 10. Traits that are inherited but not passed through DNA are called
                           a. Epigenetic             b. Extragenetic             c. Nonhomologous
                           d. Morphological                         e. Taxable


_______ 11. Which commonly acts as the reducing agent in photosynthesis?
                           a. CO2             b. C6H12O6             c. H2O             d. O2
                                   e. Suzanne Somers and the TrunkmasterTM


_______12. Materials taken in and actually used are best described as
                           a. Consumed             b. Digested             c. Homeoregulated
                           d. Assimilated                 e. The better holiday gifts


_______ 13. The main "winding" proteins used in chromatin are
                           a. Histones             b. Dyneins             c. Kinetochores
                           d. Kinesins     e. Available at the Chromatin Warehouse at discount prices!


_______ 14. Which are commonly found in parts of cells under mechanical stress?
                           a. Intermediate filaments                     b. Coated pits
                           c. Doubled membranes                       d. Receptor proteins
                                           e. Itty-bitty government regulators


_______ 15. A plasmid is a
                           a. Photosynthetic organelle                  b. Prokaryote gene copy
                           c. Cellular reproductive structure         d. Receptor type
                                   e. Tiny thing crawling under your sleeve right now


_______ 16. Chlorophyll
                           a. Absorbs mostly in the green range
                           b. Releases an electron for each photon of light absorbed
                           c. Gains an electron for each photon of light absorbed
                           d. Is a type of microfilament
                           e. "Chlorophyll" is supposed to be a question?????


_______ 17. A single starting cell would result in
                           a. Four functional sperm or four functional egg cells/ova
                           b. Two functional sperm or two functional egg cells/ova
                           c. One functional sperm or four functional egg cells/ova
                           d. Four functional sperm or one functional egg cell/ovum
                           e. That's one busy cell!


_______18. Since traits are almost never the result of a single protein working alone, most traits are considered
                           a. Multiple-gene traits                     b. Linked traits
                           c. Blended traits                              d. Mendelian traits
                                   e. Too embarrassing to discuss in public



Short Answer.  
Pick NINE questions to answer in the spaces provided.
NOTE: if you answer MORE than nine, only the first nine will be corrected.

Four Points each. Partial credit is possible.

1. In a species, what disadvantages are associated with:

LOW CHROMOSOME NUMBERS? HIGH CHROMOSOME NUMBERS?

2. What are two different things that a typical cell does in interphase?




3. Give two examples of different classes of signal ligands.




4. There are two distinctly different forms of redundancy that exist in genetic systems. What are they?




5. What are two different things that spindle fibers attach to?




6. For the Light-Dependent Reaction of Photosynthesis:
What molecules and/or energy types are absorbed?



What molecules and/or energy types are produced?

 7. For the Light-Independent Reaction of Photosynthesis:
What molecules and/or energy types are absorbed?



What molecules and/or energy types are produced?

8. What molecules make up an antenna complex?




 9. What process, exactly, results in Okazaki fragments?




10. What is a signal region on a protein used for?




11. What are the two major types of signals involved in negative feedback?




12. Electrons "excited" (but not removed) by absorption of radiation may be in a position to do one of two different, very significant things. What are they?




13. What are two reasons that an organism might undergo a metamorphosis that does not involve alternations of generations?




14. What are the two functions served by ferredoxin?




15. What two basic characteristics are used to determine a karyotype?




16. Briefly describe what each term below means:

                Qq         x         Qq         ----->                 qq





Long Answer.  

Select and answer completely any four of the following questions.
Note: if you answer more than four, only the first four will be corrected.

Seven Points Each. Partial credit is possible.

1. Each one of your answers will start with the DNA ½ strand given!! Fill in the sequences

                    ____________________________________________________________
DNA ½ Strand: C  A  G  G  C  A  T  T  C  A  G  C  C  C  A  T  A  A  G  C  A  T  C  A

Other DNA
      Strand:_____________________________________________________________

mRNA
      Strand:_____________________________________________________________

How many codons are on this strand? ____________

2. Give the name and function of the molecules involved in the four steps of typical transduction pathways.



3. Describe the main things that happen during each stage that make it different from regular mitosis:

Meiosis I:

Meiosis II:

4. At the points labeled with the stars, attach the appropriate labels from this list:

Violet. X-Ray. InfraRed. Red. Blue. UltraViolet.

Short Wavelength \ <-------------Visible Range --------------> / Long Wavelength

           *                 *     *         *                                        *             *





5.  Briefly describe, step-by-step, how a gene in the nucleus "becomes" a protein in the cytoplasm. Be sure to name the major molecules involved in the process. (Since the steps can be described in different ways, correct lists may vary in the number of steps listed.)






6. For each of the four stages of mitosis, the actual division stages, give the name of the phase (in order!) and then describe one thing that only happens during that particular phase.





7. Give three different, specific functions in the cell for:

MICROFILAMENTS MICROTUBULES



KEY TO THIS EXAM IS AVAILABLE HERE

BONUS QUESTIONS. Answer as many or as few as you wish. You can't lose points on the rest of the exam by getting these wrong. Partial credit is possible.

What sorts of non-photosynthetic uses do plants have for carotenoids? Three Points each.




What environmental conditions are thought to have specifically led to the evolution of C4 photosynthesis?




How / why did Gregor Mendel wind up doing his work with pea plants? Four Points.




For Three Points each, which lines of medical research are interested in telomeres, and for Five Points each, how do telomeres figure into that line of research?




How does an antibiotic you're given today lead to a antibiotic resistance in a disease bacterium you pick up a year later? Six Points.




It's fairly typical for a sperm tail to drop off during fertilization. What potential problem is this thought to avoid? Four Points.




In what sorts of situations are organisms benefited by alternation of generations? Four Points each (there's more than one).




Under what genetic conditions should a color-blind son be born to a color-blind father and non color-blind mother? Four Points.




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