AP (Advanced Placement) · AP Biology

Cells, Genetics, Evolution and Ecology

26 practice questions, each with the answer and an explanation.

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Random questions from this topic, one at a time. You see the answer and the explanation straight after each one.

All 26 questions

  1. In eukaryotic cells, where does most oxidative phosphorylation take place?
  2. What does ATP synthase use as the direct source of energy to make ATP?
  3. How do enzymes speed up chemical reactions?
  4. During which phase of the cell cycle is DNA replicated?
  5. Which two events in meiosis produce genetic variation among gametes?
  6. Two heterozygous plants (AaBb) are crossed, and the genes assort independently. What phenotypic ratio is expected in the offspring if A and B are completely dominant?
  7. In a population in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium the frequency of allele p is 0.7. What is the expected frequency of heterozygotes?
  8. In eukaryotic cells, where do transcription and translation occur?
  9. Which codon is the usual start signal for translation and codes for methionine?
  10. A mutation changes one nucleotide but the amino acid sequence of the protein stays the same. What type of mutation is this?
  11. What is the function of restriction enzymes in biotechnology?
  12. Which three conditions are required for evolution by natural selection?
  13. A river changes course and splits a population of squirrels in two. Over time the two groups become separate species. What is this process called?
  14. On a phylogenetic tree, what is used to group organisms into clades?
  15. What are the main products of the light reactions of photosynthesis?
  16. Where does the Calvin cycle occur, and what does rubisco do there?
  17. A cell is placed in a solution with a higher solute concentration than the cell. What happens to the cell?
  18. Which process requires energy from ATP to move molecules across a membrane?
  19. In cell signaling, what is the role of a second messenger such as cyclic AMP?
  20. What does the carrying capacity (K) of an environment represent?
  21. About what percentage of the energy at one trophic level is transferred to the next level?
  22. Which organisms are typically the first to colonize bare rock in primary succession?
  23. A rise in blood glucose triggers insulin release, which lowers the blood glucose. What type of regulation is this?
  24. Why does a second exposure to a pathogen produce a faster and stronger immune response than the first?
  25. What maintains the resting membrane potential of a neuron at about -70 millivolts?
  26. In the lac operon of E. coli, what happens when lactose is present and glucose is absent?

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