MICROBIOLOGY MODULE 6 TEST PAPER 2026
QUESTIONS AND SOLUTIONS FULL SOLUTION
GRADED A+
◉ Mutualistic relationships between microbes and insects are
common because insects ______.
Multiple choice question.
lack a digestive tract, and therefore rely on endosymbionts for
carbon
often consume diets lacking essential nutrients
lack any immune defenses, and therefore rely on microbes for this
function
require additional energy to support high levels of activity Answer:
often consume diets lacking essential nutrients
◉ Protists convert the cellulose derived from a termite's wood diet
to its preferred carbon source, acetate, through the process of ______.
Multiple choice question.
lithotrophy
decarboxylation
fermentation
nitrification Answer: fermentation
,◉ Bacteria of the genus Buchnera form a mutualistic relationship
with ______.
Multiple choice question.
aphids
corals
giant gutless marine worms
termites Answer: aphids
◉ In the termite gut, protists ferment cellulose to acetate, CO2, and
H2. The acetate is the termite's preferred carbon source, and the
CO2 and H2 are used by bacterial symbionts to ______.
Multiple choice question.
produce more acetate
oxidize more cellulose
fix nitrogen
produce methane Answer: produce more acetate
◉ Aphids and Buchnera aphidicola bacteria are obligate mutualistic
symbionts. Therefore, if the bacterial partner is separated from the
insect and placed in a culture medium, the expected result would be
that the bacteria would ______.
Multiple choice question.
, be unaffected
die
grow more quickly than usual
grow more slowly than usual Answer: die
◉ In an ecosystem, the primary producers ______.
Multiple choice question.
capture energy from a nonliving source
attach to a solid surface to initiate biofilm formation
secrete fixed nitrogen for symbiotic bacteria
secrete fixed carbon for symbiotic bacteria Answer: capture energy
from a nonliving source
◉ Comparison of the genomes of various endosymbiotic Buchnera
strains shows that ______.
Multiple choice question.
they have undergone extensive horizontal gene transfer
many of the ancestral genes have been lost
endosymbiosis occurs regularly Answer: many of the ancestral
genes have been lost
◉ Microbial autotrophs, organisms who use carbon dioxide as their
carbon source, fuel the reactions to fix CO2 by either ______ or ______.
QUESTIONS AND SOLUTIONS FULL SOLUTION
GRADED A+
◉ Mutualistic relationships between microbes and insects are
common because insects ______.
Multiple choice question.
lack a digestive tract, and therefore rely on endosymbionts for
carbon
often consume diets lacking essential nutrients
lack any immune defenses, and therefore rely on microbes for this
function
require additional energy to support high levels of activity Answer:
often consume diets lacking essential nutrients
◉ Protists convert the cellulose derived from a termite's wood diet
to its preferred carbon source, acetate, through the process of ______.
Multiple choice question.
lithotrophy
decarboxylation
fermentation
nitrification Answer: fermentation
,◉ Bacteria of the genus Buchnera form a mutualistic relationship
with ______.
Multiple choice question.
aphids
corals
giant gutless marine worms
termites Answer: aphids
◉ In the termite gut, protists ferment cellulose to acetate, CO2, and
H2. The acetate is the termite's preferred carbon source, and the
CO2 and H2 are used by bacterial symbionts to ______.
Multiple choice question.
produce more acetate
oxidize more cellulose
fix nitrogen
produce methane Answer: produce more acetate
◉ Aphids and Buchnera aphidicola bacteria are obligate mutualistic
symbionts. Therefore, if the bacterial partner is separated from the
insect and placed in a culture medium, the expected result would be
that the bacteria would ______.
Multiple choice question.
, be unaffected
die
grow more quickly than usual
grow more slowly than usual Answer: die
◉ In an ecosystem, the primary producers ______.
Multiple choice question.
capture energy from a nonliving source
attach to a solid surface to initiate biofilm formation
secrete fixed nitrogen for symbiotic bacteria
secrete fixed carbon for symbiotic bacteria Answer: capture energy
from a nonliving source
◉ Comparison of the genomes of various endosymbiotic Buchnera
strains shows that ______.
Multiple choice question.
they have undergone extensive horizontal gene transfer
many of the ancestral genes have been lost
endosymbiosis occurs regularly Answer: many of the ancestral
genes have been lost
◉ Microbial autotrophs, organisms who use carbon dioxide as their
carbon source, fuel the reactions to fix CO2 by either ______ or ______.
