Cambridge Past Paper Questions
Browse 23,045questions from 25 years of O-Level & A-Level exams. Click any question to practice.
(a) Motor neurones and sensory neurones have different roles in nervous coordination. Contrast the structure and function of sensory neurones and m...
The jaguar, Panthera onca, is a large cat that lives mainly in South America. The majority of jaguars have light brown fur with black spots, as sho...
(a) Photosynthesis is affected by many environmental factors.
Aerobic respiration occurs when oxygen is available. A much greater energy yield is obtained from aerobic respiration than from respiration in anae...
In 1973, a technique for genetic engineering was used for the first time. Recombinant DNA was made using a plasmid and this was successfully transf...
Bison are a type of large wild cattle. Ancestors of modern bison appeared in Asia 2.5 million years ago. This ancestral bison species increased its...
(a) Gibberellin is a plant hormone that has an important role in seed germination. [Figure 6.1] is a diagram of a section through a barley seed (gr...
The bacterium, Escherichia coli, can use glucose or disaccharides, such as lactose, in its metabolism. Lactose needs to be hydrolysed by the enzyme...
The role of sensory receptor cells in mammals is to detect stimuli and generate action potentials in sensory neurones. Human taste buds on the tong...
(a) Ultrafiltration in the kidney takes place between the glomerulus and the Bowman's capsule. The afferent blood vessel carrying blood to the glom...
The African penguin, Spheniscus demersus, lives along the coast of South Africa. [Figure 10.1] shows two African penguins.
(a) The water potential of mammalian blood needs to be maintained within narrow limits so that cells function efficiently. This process is called o...
Photosynthesis is an energy transfer process that results in the production of carbohydrate. It has two stages: the light-dependent stage and the l...
ATP is synthesised from ADP and Pᵢ in a phosphorylation reaction.
The puma, Puma concolor, lives in North and South America. [Figure 5.1] shows a puma. [Figure 5.2] shows the distribution of the puma species.
(a) Epistasis occurs when a gene at one locus can affect the expression of a gene at another locus.
(a) The Malayan tapir, Tapirus indicus, lives in the rainforest of South East Asia. [Figure 8.1] shows a Malayan tapir and her calf. On the Interna...
(a) [Figure 9.1] shows a cross-section through a myelinated neurone.
(a) Insulin has an important role in the maintenance of blood glucose concentration. An investigation measured how blood glucose concentration and ...
A group of students investigated two habitats: dense woodland and open grassland. • Trees are the dominant plants in woodland. The trees form a can...
Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is an example of a virus that spreads from other animals to humans where it causes disease. [Figure 2.1] shows a...
Fig. 1.1 A shows the root vegetable beetroot, Beta vulgaris. Fig. 1.1 B shows a single cell from the beetroot tissue. The vacuole contains the red...
The European badger, Meles meles, pictured in Fig. 2.1, is a mammal found in England. Badgers can contract bovine tuberculosis (bTB) caused by the...
There are a variety of methods used to estimate the water potential of plant tissues.
Respiration in blowfly larvae, Calliphora erythrocephala, can be studied by determining the respiratory quotient (RQ). A student used the apparatus...
A graticule and a micrometer scale can be used to measure the size of biological structures that are viewed with a microscope. [Figure 1.1] Which r...
Six organelles found in eukaryotic cells are shown. [Figure 2.1] Which organelles are involved in the synthesis and secretion of a glycoprotein?
Which cell structures can have mRNA inside them? 1 chloroplast 2 mitochondrion 3 nucleus 4 rough endoplasmic reticulum
Which structures are found in palisade mesophyll cells and photosynthetic prokaryotes? 1 cell surface membrane 2 cellulose wall 3 ribosomes 4 chlor...
Which polymers are present in all viruses and all prokaryotes? 1 polynucleotides 2 polypeptides 3 polysaccharides
Which set of steps is the best method for conducting the emulsion test for lipids?
A student was provided with a solution of carbohydrate. They removed two samples from the solution and performed tests on each sample, as shown. [F...
Which molecules contain at least two double bonds? [Figure 9.1]
What describes cellulose?
Which part of the structure of haemoglobin carries oxygen?
What is the maximum number of hydrogen bonds that can form between two single water molecules?
CYP3A4 is an important enzyme in the human digestive system where it is needed to break down a range of different toxins. The activity of CYP3A4 ha...
Which molecules in cell surface membranes are typically involved in cell recognition?
What can increase the fluidity of the cell surface membrane? 1 single bonds between carbon atoms in the fatty acid chains 2 cholesterol 3 longer-ch...
The three main factors that affect the rate of diffusion across a membrane can be expressed by the relationship shown. rate of diffusion is proport...
A student measured the time taken for complete diffusion of a dye into agar blocks of different sizes which were suspended in the dye. The results ...
An experiment was carried out to investigate the effect of concentration of sucrose solution on cells in a plant tissue. A sample of plant tissue w...
The diagram shows part of the organisation of a section of a DNA molecule and the associated histones, P and R, in prophase of mitosis. [Figure 20....
How many copies of each DNA molecule will be found in a cell at the start of the stages of the mitotic cell cycle shown?
One characteristic of DNA is that it is a universal genetic code. What is meant by a universal genetic code?
Which statement about mRNA is correct?
The diagram shows part of the process of translation. [Figure 24.1] What are the names of the structures labelled X, Y and Z?
The DNA triplets of genes are translated as amino acids or stop signals during protein synthesis. The table shows some of these triplets. [Figure 2...
Which row identifies cells with plasmodesmata?