AC-HPAT Biology UPDATED ACTUAL
Exam Questions and CORRECT Answers
Pancreas and Type 1 diabetes - CORRECT ANSWER - The pancreas is the organ that
produces insulin, and it plays a major role in regulating blood glucose levels. Type 1 diabetes
occurs when the pancreas does not make enough or any insulin.
How does insulin work in diabetes? - CORRECT ANSWER - Insulin pumps are small,
computerized devices that mimic the way the human pancreas works by delivering small doses
of short acting insulin continuously (basal rate). The device also is used to deliver variable
amounts of insulin when a meal is eaten (bolus)
chemotherapy - CORRECT ANSWER - Chemotherapy is a drug treatment that uses
powerful chemicals to kill fast-growing cells in your body. Chemotherapy is most often used to
treat cancer, since cancer cells grow and multiply much more quickly than most cells in the
body. It targets cells that grow and divide quickly, as cancer cells do. Unlike radiation or surgery,
which target specific areas, chemo can work throughout your body. But it can also affect some
fast-growing healthy cells, like those of the skin, hair, intestines, and bone marrow.
How can stem cells be used in the treatment of leukemia? And how effective is it? - CORRECT
ANSWER - Stem cell transplant replaces the leukemia cells in your bone marrow with
new ones that make blood. Your doctor can get the new stem cells from your own body or from a
donor. Stem cell transplantation is effective against leukemia. In many cases, however, the
transferred immune cells of the donor also attack the recipients' healthy tissue—often with fatal
consequences. ... Stem cell therapy offers people suffering from leukemia or bone-marrow
cancer the chance of full recovery.
Why is laser technology more effective than conventional surgery in removing cancerous
tumours? - CORRECT ANSWER - Lasers are more precise than standard surgical tools
(scalpels), so they do less damage to normal tissues. As a result, patients usually have less pain,
bleeding, swelling, and scarring. With laser therapy, operations are usually shorter.
Urinary system - CORRECT ANSWER - · The urinary system, also known as the renal
system or urinary tract, consists of the kidneys, ureters, bladder, and the urethra. The purpose of
,the urinary system is to eliminate waste from the body, regulate blood volume and blood
pressure, control levels of electrolytes and metabolites, and regulate blood pH
Nanotechnology - CORRECT ANSWER - Nanotechnology can provide rapid and
sensitive detection of cancer-related molecules, enabling scientists to detect molecular changes
even when they occur only in a small percentage of cells.
Mercury poisoning - CORRECT ANSWER - The most common cause of mercury
poisoning is from consuming too much methyl mercury or organic mercury, which is linked to
eating seafood. Small amounts of mercury are present in everyday foods and products, which
may not affect your health. Too much mercury, however, can be poisonous. Mercury salts affect
primarily the gastrointestinal tract and the kidneys, and can cause severe kidney damage;
however, as they cannot cross the blood-brain barrier easily, these salts inflict little neurological
damage without continuous or heavy exposure.
How can ultraviolet light from the sun affect the cells of the human eye? - CORRECT
ANSWER - UV rays may lead to macular degeneration, a leading cause of vision loss for
older Americans. UV rays, especially UV-B rays, may also cause some kinds of cataracts. A
cataract is a clouding of the eye's natural lens, the part of the eye that focuses the light we see.
Macromolecules - CORRECT ANSWER - Macromolecules are large molecules composed
of thousands of covalently connected atoms. Carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids
are all macromolecules. Macromolecules are formed by many monomers linking together,
forming a polymer.
passive transport - CORRECT ANSWER - Passive transport is a movement of ions and
other atomic or molecular substances across cell membranes without need of energy input.
Unlike active transport, it does not require an input of cellular energy because it is instead driven
by the tendency of the system to grow in entropy.
active transport - CORRECT ANSWER - active transport is the movement of molecules
across a membrane from a region of lower concentration to a region of higher concentration—
against the concentration gradient. Active transport requires cellular energy to achieve this
movement.
, catalyst - CORRECT ANSWER - Catalyst: a substance that increases the rate of a
chemical reaction without itself undergoing any permanent chemical change.
fluid mosaic model - CORRECT ANSWER - describes the structure of the plasma
membrane as a mosaic of components —including phospholipids, cholesterol, proteins, and
carbohydrates—that gives the membrane a fluid character. The proportions of proteins, lipids,
and carbohydrates in the plasma membrane vary with cell type
Effect of lead on nerve cells - CORRECT ANSWER - Lead poisoning can cause
peripheral nerve damage: this can cause muscle weakness and problems with the sense of touch.
When researchers examine these damaged nerves, they find that the myelin insulation is often
gone, and the axons are destroyed. These changes prevent nerves from transmitting messages
properly.
the effect of electromagnetic radiation on brain - CORRECT ANSWER - Reported
symptoms include headaches, anxiety, suicide and depression, nausea, fatigue and loss of libido.
To date, scientific evidence does not support a link between these symptoms and exposure to
electromagnetic fields.
Carbohydrates function - CORRECT ANSWER - Carbohydrates are the most abundant
biomolecule on Earth. Living organisms use carbohydrates as accessible energy to fuel cellular
reactions and for structural support inside cell walls. Cells attach carbohydrate molecules to
proteins and lipids, modifying structures to enhance functionality.
Proteins function - CORRECT ANSWER - Proteins fold up into specific shapes according
to the sequence of amino acids in the polymer, and the protein function is directly related to the
resulting 3D structure. Proteins may also interact with each other or other macromolecules in the
body to create complex assemblies.
Enzymes function - CORRECT ANSWER - Enzymes are the catalysts involved in
biological chemical reactions. They are the "gnomes" inside each one of us that take molecules
like nucleotides and align them together to create DNA, or amino acids to make proteins, to
name two of thousands of such functions.
Exam Questions and CORRECT Answers
Pancreas and Type 1 diabetes - CORRECT ANSWER - The pancreas is the organ that
produces insulin, and it plays a major role in regulating blood glucose levels. Type 1 diabetes
occurs when the pancreas does not make enough or any insulin.
How does insulin work in diabetes? - CORRECT ANSWER - Insulin pumps are small,
computerized devices that mimic the way the human pancreas works by delivering small doses
of short acting insulin continuously (basal rate). The device also is used to deliver variable
amounts of insulin when a meal is eaten (bolus)
chemotherapy - CORRECT ANSWER - Chemotherapy is a drug treatment that uses
powerful chemicals to kill fast-growing cells in your body. Chemotherapy is most often used to
treat cancer, since cancer cells grow and multiply much more quickly than most cells in the
body. It targets cells that grow and divide quickly, as cancer cells do. Unlike radiation or surgery,
which target specific areas, chemo can work throughout your body. But it can also affect some
fast-growing healthy cells, like those of the skin, hair, intestines, and bone marrow.
How can stem cells be used in the treatment of leukemia? And how effective is it? - CORRECT
ANSWER - Stem cell transplant replaces the leukemia cells in your bone marrow with
new ones that make blood. Your doctor can get the new stem cells from your own body or from a
donor. Stem cell transplantation is effective against leukemia. In many cases, however, the
transferred immune cells of the donor also attack the recipients' healthy tissue—often with fatal
consequences. ... Stem cell therapy offers people suffering from leukemia or bone-marrow
cancer the chance of full recovery.
Why is laser technology more effective than conventional surgery in removing cancerous
tumours? - CORRECT ANSWER - Lasers are more precise than standard surgical tools
(scalpels), so they do less damage to normal tissues. As a result, patients usually have less pain,
bleeding, swelling, and scarring. With laser therapy, operations are usually shorter.
Urinary system - CORRECT ANSWER - · The urinary system, also known as the renal
system or urinary tract, consists of the kidneys, ureters, bladder, and the urethra. The purpose of
,the urinary system is to eliminate waste from the body, regulate blood volume and blood
pressure, control levels of electrolytes and metabolites, and regulate blood pH
Nanotechnology - CORRECT ANSWER - Nanotechnology can provide rapid and
sensitive detection of cancer-related molecules, enabling scientists to detect molecular changes
even when they occur only in a small percentage of cells.
Mercury poisoning - CORRECT ANSWER - The most common cause of mercury
poisoning is from consuming too much methyl mercury or organic mercury, which is linked to
eating seafood. Small amounts of mercury are present in everyday foods and products, which
may not affect your health. Too much mercury, however, can be poisonous. Mercury salts affect
primarily the gastrointestinal tract and the kidneys, and can cause severe kidney damage;
however, as they cannot cross the blood-brain barrier easily, these salts inflict little neurological
damage without continuous or heavy exposure.
How can ultraviolet light from the sun affect the cells of the human eye? - CORRECT
ANSWER - UV rays may lead to macular degeneration, a leading cause of vision loss for
older Americans. UV rays, especially UV-B rays, may also cause some kinds of cataracts. A
cataract is a clouding of the eye's natural lens, the part of the eye that focuses the light we see.
Macromolecules - CORRECT ANSWER - Macromolecules are large molecules composed
of thousands of covalently connected atoms. Carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids
are all macromolecules. Macromolecules are formed by many monomers linking together,
forming a polymer.
passive transport - CORRECT ANSWER - Passive transport is a movement of ions and
other atomic or molecular substances across cell membranes without need of energy input.
Unlike active transport, it does not require an input of cellular energy because it is instead driven
by the tendency of the system to grow in entropy.
active transport - CORRECT ANSWER - active transport is the movement of molecules
across a membrane from a region of lower concentration to a region of higher concentration—
against the concentration gradient. Active transport requires cellular energy to achieve this
movement.
, catalyst - CORRECT ANSWER - Catalyst: a substance that increases the rate of a
chemical reaction without itself undergoing any permanent chemical change.
fluid mosaic model - CORRECT ANSWER - describes the structure of the plasma
membrane as a mosaic of components —including phospholipids, cholesterol, proteins, and
carbohydrates—that gives the membrane a fluid character. The proportions of proteins, lipids,
and carbohydrates in the plasma membrane vary with cell type
Effect of lead on nerve cells - CORRECT ANSWER - Lead poisoning can cause
peripheral nerve damage: this can cause muscle weakness and problems with the sense of touch.
When researchers examine these damaged nerves, they find that the myelin insulation is often
gone, and the axons are destroyed. These changes prevent nerves from transmitting messages
properly.
the effect of electromagnetic radiation on brain - CORRECT ANSWER - Reported
symptoms include headaches, anxiety, suicide and depression, nausea, fatigue and loss of libido.
To date, scientific evidence does not support a link between these symptoms and exposure to
electromagnetic fields.
Carbohydrates function - CORRECT ANSWER - Carbohydrates are the most abundant
biomolecule on Earth. Living organisms use carbohydrates as accessible energy to fuel cellular
reactions and for structural support inside cell walls. Cells attach carbohydrate molecules to
proteins and lipids, modifying structures to enhance functionality.
Proteins function - CORRECT ANSWER - Proteins fold up into specific shapes according
to the sequence of amino acids in the polymer, and the protein function is directly related to the
resulting 3D structure. Proteins may also interact with each other or other macromolecules in the
body to create complex assemblies.
Enzymes function - CORRECT ANSWER - Enzymes are the catalysts involved in
biological chemical reactions. They are the "gnomes" inside each one of us that take molecules
like nucleotides and align them together to create DNA, or amino acids to make proteins, to
name two of thousands of such functions.
