Archives: Questions and Answers

Describe the structure and function of a sensory neurone and a motor neurone and state that intermediate neurones connect sensory neurones and motor neurones

Explain that stomata respond to changes in environmental conditions by opening and closing and that regulation of stomatal aperture balances the need for carbon dioxide uptake by diffusion with the need to minimise water loss by transpiration

State that Calvin cycle intermediates are used to produce other molecules, limited to GP to produce some amino acids and TP to produce carbohydrates, lipids and amino acids

Outline the three main stages of the Calvin cycle: • rubisco catalyses the fixation of carbon dioxide by combination with a molecule of ribulose bisphosphate (RuBP), a 5C compound, to yield two molecules of glycerate 3-phosphate (GP), a 3C compound • GP is reduced to triose phosphate (TP) in reactions involving reduced NADP and ATP … Read more

Discuss the ethical and social implications of using genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in food production

Explain that genetic engineering may help to solve the global demand for food by improving the quality and productivity of farmed animals and crop plants, using the examples of GM salmon, herbicide resistance in soybean and insect resistance in cotton

Discuss the social and ethical considerations of using genetic screening and gene therapy in medicine

Outline how genetic diseases can be treated with gene therapy, using the examples severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) and inherited eye diseases

Outline the advantages of genetic screening, using the examples of breast cancer (BRCA1 and BRCA2), Huntington’s disease and cystic fibrosis

Explain the advantages of using recombinant human proteins to treat disease, using the examples insulin, factor VIII and adenosine deaminase