MIC 102 COMPREHENSIVE EXAM 2025/2026 QUESTIONS
AND ANSWERS GRADED A+
✔✔osmotic pressure - ✔✔the pressure that must be applied to the solution side to stop
fluid movement across a semi-permeable membrane
✔✔turgor pressure - ✔✔pressure exerted by water against the inside of the cell
envelope
✔✔hypertonic environment - ✔✔environment in which there is more solute outside the
cell than inside the cell
✔✔isotonic environment - ✔✔The concentration of a solution is the same inside and
outside the cell
✔✔hypotonic environment - ✔✔environment in which there is less solute outside the
cell than inside the cell
✔✔what is the peptidoglycan cell wall? - ✔✔long chains of sugars connected by
peptides
✔✔types of periplasm enzymes - ✔✔hydrolytic enzymes, peptidoglycan synthesis
proteins, binding proteins, chemoreceptors, detoxifying enzymes
✔✔what will happen to a gram-positive bacterium if it was growing in the presence of
penicillin in a hypotonic solution?
a. nothing
b. the cell will lyse
c. the cytoplasm will undergo plasmolysis
d. the cell will expand in size but remain viable
e. it depends on cell morphology - ✔✔b. the cell will lyse
✔✔what has the crystalline surface layer (s-layer)? - ✔✔many bacteria and almost all
archaea
✔✔s-layer - ✔✔a layer of glycoproteins around the outermost part of the cell in bacteria
and archaea
✔✔slime layer - ✔✔a glycocalyx that is unorganized and loosely attached to the cell
wall
✔✔capsule - ✔✔a polysaccharide layer around the cell envelope
✔✔what type of linkages does the archaeal envelope have? - ✔✔ether linkages
, ✔✔what is in the archaeal envelope? - ✔✔isoprenoids, glycerol, and possibly
pseudomurein
✔✔where are flagellin synthesized? - ✔✔cytoplasm
✔✔flagella - ✔✔help with movement and attachment
✔✔bacterial pilus - ✔✔"hair"
✔✔key functions of the bacterial pilus - ✔✔attachment, conjugation, twitching motility
✔✔what is twitching motility of the bacterial pilus? - ✔✔its a movement for the bacteria
to move across surfaces
✔✔fimbriae - ✔✔helps attach to surfaces via adhesins at their tip; mostly on grma-
negative species
✔✔predict which structure(s) a virus or immune cell could access from the outside of an
intact gram-negative bacterial cell
a. capsule
b. cell membrane
c. lipopolysaccharide
d. peptidoglycan
e. s-layer - ✔✔a. capsule
c. lipopolysaccharide
e. s-layer
✔✔cytoplasm - ✔✔everything inside the cell membrane
✔✔what is in the cytoplasm? - ✔✔cytosol, cytoplasm, nucleoid, ribosomes, inclusions
and micro-compartments
✔✔T/F: does size matter with diffusion? - ✔✔true
✔✔which of the 3 domains have cytoskeletons? - ✔✔B, A, E
✔✔what is the bacterial cytoskeleton is made of? - ✔✔homologs of eukaryotic
cytoskeletal proteins; tubulin, actin, intermediate filaments
✔✔what are the micro-compartments in some bacteria? - ✔✔gas vesicles,
carboxysomes, thylakoids
AND ANSWERS GRADED A+
✔✔osmotic pressure - ✔✔the pressure that must be applied to the solution side to stop
fluid movement across a semi-permeable membrane
✔✔turgor pressure - ✔✔pressure exerted by water against the inside of the cell
envelope
✔✔hypertonic environment - ✔✔environment in which there is more solute outside the
cell than inside the cell
✔✔isotonic environment - ✔✔The concentration of a solution is the same inside and
outside the cell
✔✔hypotonic environment - ✔✔environment in which there is less solute outside the
cell than inside the cell
✔✔what is the peptidoglycan cell wall? - ✔✔long chains of sugars connected by
peptides
✔✔types of periplasm enzymes - ✔✔hydrolytic enzymes, peptidoglycan synthesis
proteins, binding proteins, chemoreceptors, detoxifying enzymes
✔✔what will happen to a gram-positive bacterium if it was growing in the presence of
penicillin in a hypotonic solution?
a. nothing
b. the cell will lyse
c. the cytoplasm will undergo plasmolysis
d. the cell will expand in size but remain viable
e. it depends on cell morphology - ✔✔b. the cell will lyse
✔✔what has the crystalline surface layer (s-layer)? - ✔✔many bacteria and almost all
archaea
✔✔s-layer - ✔✔a layer of glycoproteins around the outermost part of the cell in bacteria
and archaea
✔✔slime layer - ✔✔a glycocalyx that is unorganized and loosely attached to the cell
wall
✔✔capsule - ✔✔a polysaccharide layer around the cell envelope
✔✔what type of linkages does the archaeal envelope have? - ✔✔ether linkages
, ✔✔what is in the archaeal envelope? - ✔✔isoprenoids, glycerol, and possibly
pseudomurein
✔✔where are flagellin synthesized? - ✔✔cytoplasm
✔✔flagella - ✔✔help with movement and attachment
✔✔bacterial pilus - ✔✔"hair"
✔✔key functions of the bacterial pilus - ✔✔attachment, conjugation, twitching motility
✔✔what is twitching motility of the bacterial pilus? - ✔✔its a movement for the bacteria
to move across surfaces
✔✔fimbriae - ✔✔helps attach to surfaces via adhesins at their tip; mostly on grma-
negative species
✔✔predict which structure(s) a virus or immune cell could access from the outside of an
intact gram-negative bacterial cell
a. capsule
b. cell membrane
c. lipopolysaccharide
d. peptidoglycan
e. s-layer - ✔✔a. capsule
c. lipopolysaccharide
e. s-layer
✔✔cytoplasm - ✔✔everything inside the cell membrane
✔✔what is in the cytoplasm? - ✔✔cytosol, cytoplasm, nucleoid, ribosomes, inclusions
and micro-compartments
✔✔T/F: does size matter with diffusion? - ✔✔true
✔✔which of the 3 domains have cytoskeletons? - ✔✔B, A, E
✔✔what is the bacterial cytoskeleton is made of? - ✔✔homologs of eukaryotic
cytoskeletal proteins; tubulin, actin, intermediate filaments
✔✔what are the micro-compartments in some bacteria? - ✔✔gas vesicles,
carboxysomes, thylakoids
