Outline the characteristic features of organisms in the domain Archaea.

Mark scheme

Marking points from the official mark scheme (May/June 2018). The mark or mark type is shown in brackets.

1. [8] any 8 of: 1 no, nucleus / nuclear envelope; 2 circular DNA / plasmid ; A circular chromosome 3 cell membrane composition different (from, bacteria / eukarya); 4 no membrane-bound organelles / named example ; 5 70S ribosomes ; 6 cell wall present; 7 cell wall does not contain peptidoglycans; 8 cells divide by, binary / multiple, fission ; 9 (mostly) unicellular; 10 (some) have histones associated with DNA ; 11 (some) are extremophiles / description ;
2. [7] any 7 of: 1 variety / collection, of seeds; 2 long-term storage; 3 (storage) to, prevent germination / maintain dormancy; 4 detail of storage conditions ; e.g. frozen or stored at temperatures below –13 °C dried 5 seeds regularly tested for viability / description; 6 seeds re-stocked regularly; 7 maintain genetic diversity / genetic material preserved / acts as a gene bank ; 8 detail of future use ; e.g. can be used after environmental disaster / new diseases / used to increase numbers 9 maintains biodiversity; 10 research / education; 11 AVP; e.g. takes up less space than growing plants / ref. to cheaper to store than whole plants