Biology Comprehensive Practice Test 2

Questions

100

Marks

Sections

100%

Auto-Graded

Section	Questions	Marks each	Total marks
A — Multiple Choice	15	2	30
B — True / False	10	2	20
C — Fill in the Blank	10	2	20
D — Column Matching	5 pairs	2	10
E — Short Answer	5	4	20
Total	45	—	100

Fill-in-the-blank answers are checked against accepted spellings of the key term. Short answers are marked against a marking guide: write a full answer (at least 8 words) and you earn marks for each key idea you include. After you submit, every question shows the correct answer with a short explanation.

Section A — Multiple Choice

30 marks

15 questions · 2 marks each. Choose the best answer.

1.The first line of defence against many pathogens includes:Basic2 pts

A. Antibodies made after infection

B. Skin and mucous barriers

C. Memory B cells made by earlier exposure

D. Red blood cells carrying oxygen

Why: The correct answer is B. Skin, mucous membranes, cilia and secretions such as tears and stomach acid block or remove many pathogens before any immune cells are needed.

2.Innate immunity is best described as:Basic2 pts

A. A response that occurs only after a vaccine has been given to the person

B. A defence based entirely on antibodies made by plasma cells

C. A system that contains no cells, only chemicals in the blood and tissues

D. A rapid, broadly acting defence present before a specific infection

Why: The correct answer is D. Innate defences are always ready and act quickly against many kinds of pathogen. They do not need earlier exposure.

3.Antibodies are produced by:Basic2 pts

A. Activated B-lineage cells, especially plasma cells

B. Red blood cells made in the bone marrow

C. Platelets that help blood to clot

D. Alveolar cells that line the air sacs of the lungs

Why: The correct answer is A. When a B cell is activated it can become a plasma cell, which secretes large amounts of antibody.

4.A key feature of adaptive immunity is:Basic2 pts

A. Absence of receptors on immune cells

B. Immediate action without any recognition

C. Specific recognition and immunological memory

D. Inability to respond to the same pathogen again

Why: The correct answer is C. Adaptive immunity recognises particular antigens through specific receptors and keeps memory cells for faster responses later.

5.Vaccination works primarily by:Basic2 pts

A. Destroying every microorganism that is already inside the body

B. Training the immune system to recognise a target without causing the disease

C. Replacing the body's white blood cells with new ones

D. Making all pathogens permanently unable to mutate

Why: The correct answer is B. A vaccine shows the immune system a harmless form or part of a pathogen so that memory is formed before real infection.

6.A booster dose can be useful because:Intermediate2 pts

A. The first vaccine permanently disappears from the body after a few hours

B. It changes all pathogens into harmless organisms

C. It removes all immune cells so that new ones can form

D. Immune memory can be strengthened and antibody responses can rise again

Why: The correct answer is D. A repeat exposure reminds the immune system, strengthens memory and can raise antibody levels that have fallen over time.

7.A person infected with a virus is not necessarily helped by an antibiotic because:Intermediate2 pts

A. Antibiotics target bacterial features, not viral replication

B. Viruses are always larger than bacteria and cannot be reached

C. Antibiotics only work on the cells of plants and fungi

D. Viruses have cell walls that antibiotics cannot reach

Why: The correct answer is A. Antibiotics act on features of bacteria, such as cell walls or bacterial enzymes. Viruses replicate inside host cells and lack those targets.

8.Antimicrobial resistance is strongly promoted when:Intermediate2 pts

A. All microbes in a population become resistant at the same moment

B. Antibiotics deliberately create every mutation that a microbe needs

C. Resistant variants survive and reproduce while susceptible microbes are killed

D. Resistance can never be inherited by the next generation of microbes

Why: The correct answer is C. Drug exposure selects for variants that can survive. Those variants reproduce and pass resistance on, so resistance becomes more common.

9.Autoimmune disease involves:Intermediate2 pts

A. Complete absence of all immune cells in the blood

B. Immune responses directed against the body's own tissues

C. An infection that is caused only by bacteria

D. Allergic reactions to harmless foreign substances only

Why: The correct answer is B. In autoimmune disease the immune system wrongly treats the body's own molecules as targets and damages healthy tissue.

10.An allergy is best understood as:Intermediate2 pts

A. A disease that is always caused by bacteria

B. A complete lack of antibodies in every person who has it

C. A genetic mutation that is present in every immune cell

D. An excessive immune response to a usually harmless substance

Why: The correct answer is D. In allergy the immune system overreacts to a harmless substance such as pollen or certain foods.

11.Which immune cell type can directly kill infected or abnormal target cells?Advanced2 pts

A. Red blood cells

B. Platelets

C. Cytotoxic T cells

D. Osteocytes

Why: The correct answer is C. Cytotoxic T cells recognise infected or abnormal cells and trigger them to die. Red blood cells carry oxygen, platelets help clotting and osteocytes are bone cells.

12.Inflammation can be useful because it:Advanced2 pts

A. Helps recruit immune cells and boosts local defence

B. Always shows that an autoimmune disease is present in the body

C. Prevents any immune response from starting at the site

D. Occurs only in the tissues of the brain

Why: The correct answer is A. Inflammation increases blood flow and brings immune cells and molecules to the site of injury or infection. Excessive or long-lasting inflammation can be harmful.

13.Why can a second exposure to the same antigen sometimes produce a faster response?Advanced2 pts

A. Pathogens always become weaker after the first exposure to them

B. The skin becomes permanently thicker after every infection

C. Red blood cells remember the antigens that they have met

D. Memory cells formed during the first response can respond rapidly

Why: The correct answer is D. Memory B and T cells made during the first response recognise the antigen quickly and multiply faster.

14.A vaccine with high effectiveness can reduce disease spread because:Advanced2 pts

A. Vaccinated people can never carry any disease-causing microorganism

B. Fewer susceptible people can mean fewer chances for the pathogen to spread

C. It removes every pathogen from the environment around us

D. It guarantees lifelong sterilising immunity in every person

Why: The correct answer is B. When fewer people can be infected, a pathogen has fewer chances to pass from person to person. No vaccine is perfect for everyone.

15.Which statement best integrates immunity and public health?Advanced2 pts

A. Public health has no biological component and depends only on rules

B. Only antibody levels in one person matter for disease control

C. Individual protection and population-level spread can influence each other

D. Vaccination changes only the genes of the vaccinated person

Why: The correct answer is C. Protection in individuals changes how an infection spreads, and how it spreads in turn affects who is at risk.

Section B — True / False

20 marks

10 questions · 2 marks each.

16.The immune system can distinguish many molecular patterns using specialised receptors.Basic2 pts

True

False

Why: The answer is True. Immune cells carry receptors that recognise many different molecular patterns, including antigens.

17.Innate immunity is completely absent until after vaccination.Basic2 pts

True

False

Why: The answer is False. Innate defences are present from birth and do not depend on vaccination.

18.Antibodies are proteins that can bind specific targets.Basic2 pts

True

False

Why: The answer is True. Each antibody has binding sites that fit a particular antigen.

19.All inflammation is harmful.Basic2 pts

True

False

Why: The answer is False. Short-term inflammation helps defence and repair. Only excessive or prolonged inflammation causes harm.

20.Vaccines are designed to induce immune memory against particular targets.Basic2 pts

True

False

Why: The answer is True. Vaccines present antigens so that memory cells are formed before real infection.

21.Antibiotics are effective treatments for every viral infection.Intermediate2 pts

True

False

Why: The answer is False. Antibiotics act on bacteria, not viruses.

22.Antimicrobial resistance can spread through microbial populations.Intermediate2 pts

True

False

Why: The answer is True. Resistant microbes reproduce, and resistance genes can also pass between microbes.

23.Autoimmune reactions can involve immune recognition of self molecules as targets.Advanced2 pts

True

False

Why: The answer is True. This is the key idea of autoimmunity: the immune system targets the body's own molecules.

24.A person with immune memory can never become infected again.Advanced2 pts

True

False

Why: The answer is False. Memory lowers risk but does not guarantee complete protection. Some pathogens change, and immunity can fade.

25.Herd or community protection can depend on how many people are susceptible and how efficiently an infection spreads.Advanced2 pts

True

False

Why: The answer is True. Both the share of people who can be infected and how easily the pathogen spreads affect community protection.

Section C — Fill in the Blank

20 marks

10 questions · 2 marks each. Type the missing word or term.

26.The first line of physical defence includes the skin and ______ membranes.Intermediate2 pts

Why: Mucous membranes line openings such as the nose and throat and trap pathogens in mucus.

27.The branch of immunity that includes rapid, broad defences is ______ immunity.Intermediate2 pts

Why: Innate immunity acts quickly against many kinds of pathogen.

28.Cells that secrete large amounts of antibodies are called ______ cells.Intermediate2 pts

Why: Plasma cells are activated B cells that make antibodies.

29.Long-lived cells that contribute to faster secondary responses are ______ cells.Intermediate2 pts

Why: Memory cells remain after an infection and respond fast to the same antigen.

30.A substance or molecular structure recognised by specific immune receptors is an ______.Intermediate2 pts

Why: An antigen is what immune receptors and antibodies recognise.

31.A preparation that trains the immune system to recognise a pathogen without causing the disease is called a ______.Advanced2 pts

Why: A vaccine primes the immune system and builds memory.

32.The inappropriate immune response to harmless substances seen in hay fever is an ______.Advanced2 pts

Why: Hay fever is an allergy to harmless substances such as pollen.

33.Immune attack against the body's own tissues is characteristic of ______ disease.Advanced2 pts

Why: Autoimmune disease involves immune attack on the body's own tissues.

34.The ability of microbes to survive drugs that once killed them is called antimicrobial ______.Advanced2 pts

Why: This is antimicrobial resistance (AMR).

35.The movement of an infection through a population depends partly on transmission and the number of ______ people.Advanced2 pts

Why: Susceptible people can still be infected, so their number affects spread.

Section D — Column Matching

10 marks

Use the ▲ ▼ buttons to reorder Column B until each row lines up with the correct term in Column A. 2 marks per correct pair.

36–40.Match each term in Column A with the correct description in Column B.Advanced10 pts

Column A

Antibody

Memory cell

Vaccine

Autoimmunity

Antimicrobial resistance

Column B

Exposure designed to train immune memory

Reduced susceptibility of a microbe to a drug

Specific protein that binds an antigen

Supports a faster secondary immune response

Immune attack against self

Why: An antibody is a specific protein that binds an antigen; a memory cell supports a faster secondary response; a vaccine is exposure designed to train immune memory; autoimmunity is immune attack against self; antimicrobial resistance is reduced susceptibility of a microbe to a drug.

Section E — Short Answer

20 marks

5 questions · 4 marks each. Answer in one or two full sentences (at least 8 words). Marks are given for each key idea in the marking guide.

41.Compare innate and adaptive immunity in terms of speed, specificity and memory.Advanced4 pts

42.Explain why vaccination can protect an individual without giving them the disease the vaccine is designed to prevent.Advanced4 pts

43.Explain how antimicrobial resistance can increase in a bacterial population after antibiotic exposure.Advanced4 pts

44.Why does autoimmune disease differ conceptually from infection?Advanced4 pts

45.Explain how individual vaccination and population transmission can interact.Advanced4 pts