1. Which of the following best describes the fluid mosaic model?
A) Membranes are rigid barriers with proteins anchored in fixed positions.
B) Membranes are mosaics of proteins bobbing in a fluid bilayer of
phospholipids.
C) Membranes are single-layered lipid sheets stabilized by cholesterol.
D) Membranes are composed of only lipids with proteins attached externally.
2. Which property of phospholipids makes them form bilayers in water?
A) Hydrophobic fatty acid tails and hydrophilic phosphate heads
B) Fully nonpolar hydrocarbon chains
C) Strong covalent bonding between phospholipids
D) Attraction between cholesterol and phospholipids
3. What effect does cholesterol have on membrane fluidity at warm temperatures?
A) Increases fluidity
B) Decreases fluidity
C) Has no effect
D) Makes the membrane solid
4. Which type of membrane protein penetrates the hydrophobic interior of the
lipid bilayer?
A) Peripheral protein
B) Glycoprotein
C) Integral protein
D) Enzyme
5. Which function of membrane proteins allows cells to recognize each other?
A) Signal transduction
B) Transport
C) Cell-cell recognition
D) Attachment to cytoskeleton
6. Why do some organisms adjust their membrane lipid composition with seasonal
changes?
A) To alter osmotic gradients
B) To maintain proper membrane fluidity
C) To reduce cholesterol levels
D) To produce more glycolipids
7. Which of the following molecules crosses the membrane most easily?
A) Glucose
B) Water
C) Oxygen
D) Sodium ion
8. Aquaporins are best described as:
A) Pumps that use ATP to move water
B) Transport proteins that allow water diffusion
C) Enzymes that hydrolyze water
D) Peripheral proteins
9. What happens when an inorganic phosphate binds to a carrier protein?
A) The protein is degraded
B) The protein loses function
C) The protein changes shape
D) The protein releases ATP
10. Which statement best describes selective permeability?
A) All molecules pass freely across the membrane
B) Membranes allow all polar molecules but not nonpolar molecules
C) Membranes regulate entry and exit of specific substances
D) Membranes are impermeable to all solutes
11. Which of the following is **not** true about diffusion?
A) Molecules move randomly
B) Net movement is from high to low concentration
C) Diffusion requires ATP
D) Diffusion stops at dynamic equilibrium
12. Osmosis is best defined as:
A) Movement of solute down its gradient
B) Movement of water across a selectively permeable membrane
C) Active pumping of ions
D) Movement of glucose using proteins
13. A red blood cell placed in a hypertonic solution will:
A) Gain water and burst
B) Lose water and shrink
C) Remain unchanged
D) Become turgid
14. A plant cell placed in pure water becomes:
A) Flaccid
B) Plasmolyzed
C) Turgid
D) Lysed
15. Which statement about facilitated diffusion is correct?
A) It requires ATP
B) It uses transport proteins
C) It moves solutes against their gradient
D) It stops at isotonic conditions
16. Ion channels that open in response to stimuli are called:
A) Gated channels
B) Aquaporins
C) Carrier proteins
D) Glycolipids
17. Which process requires energy?
A) Diffusion
B) Osmosis
C) Active transport
D) Facilitated diffusion
18. Which transport protein is essential for maintaining Na+ and K+ gradients in
animal cells?
A) Proton pump
B) Sodium-potassium pump
C) Aquaporin
D) ATP synthase
19. The resting potential of a neuron is maintained by:
A) Sodium-potassium pump
B) Aquaporins
C) Proton pump
D) Diffusion of glucose
20. An electrogenic pump generates:
A) ATP directly
B) Voltage across a membrane
C) Hypertonic solutions
D) Channel proteins
21. Which best describes cotransport?
A) Two solutes move in opposite directions, both downhill
B) Downhill diffusion of one solute drives uphill transport of another
C) Both solutes move uphill with ATP
D) Carrier protein uses phosphate to break bonds
22. What is the main similarity between exocytosis and endocytosis?
A) Both require vesicles and energy
B) Both release molecules out of the cell
C) Both involve receptor proteins
D) Both transport ions only
23. Which type of endocytosis is referred to as “cellular drinking”?
A) Phagocytosis
B) Pinocytosis
C) Exocytosis
D) Receptor-mediated endocytosis
24. Which endocytic process involves cholesterol uptake?
A) Phagocytosis
B) Pinocytosis
C) Receptor-mediated endocytosis
D) Exocytosis
25. In familial hypercholesterolemia, what is defective?
A) LDL receptor proteins
B) Sodium-potassium pump
C) Proton pump
D) Aquaporins
26. A white blood cell engulfing a bacterium is an example of:
A) Pinocytosis
B) Phagocytosis
C) Exocytosis
D) Facilitated diffusion
27. Which statement about bulk transport is correct?
A) It does not require energy
B) It transports only small ions
C) It involves vesicle formation
D) It relies only on diffusion
28. Which adaptation would you expect in fish living in polar oceans?
A) Saturated hydrocarbon tails
B) High levels of cholesterol
C) Unsaturated hydrocarbon tails
D) No phospholipids
29. Which molecule would most likely need a transport protein to cross the
plasma membrane?
A) CO₂
B) O₂
C) Na⁺
D) Hydrocarbon
30. Why is membrane fluidity important for cell function?
A) It ensures rigid support
B) It allows proper function of proteins and transport
C) It makes membranes impermeable
D) It prevents signaling
FRQ 1:
Explain the role of phospholipid structure in forming a bilayer. Discuss how
temperature and cholesterol influence membrane fluidity. Provide one example of
an adaptation in organisms living in variable temperature conditions.
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FRQ 2:
Compare and contrast passive and active transport. In your answer, include:
* A description of each process
* An example of a molecule transported by each
* The role of transport proteins
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FRQ 3:
A student places plant cells in three different solutions: distilled water, 0.9%
NaCl, and 10% NaCl. Predict the outcome for the plant cells in each solution.
Explain your reasoning based on water potential and tonicity.
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FRQ 4:
Describe the sodium-potassium pump and its importance in generating membrane
potential. Explain how this pump contributes to both the chemical and electrical
components of the electrochemical gradient.
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FRQ 5:
Familial hypercholesterolemia results in high blood cholesterol. Describe the
mechanism of receptor-mediated endocytosis and explain how defective LDL
receptors lead to this condition.
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