BROCK BIOLOGY OF MICROORGANISMS
ACTUAL EXAM 2026 QUESTIONS WITH
ANSWERS ALREADY PASSED
◉ Bacteria with type IV pili
A) possess tubular or stalk-like extensions of their cells.
B) likely exhibit twitching motility.
C) have capsules that promote dehydration.
D) live in aquatic environments. Answer: B) likely exhibit twitching
motility.
◉ The terms "run" and "tumble" are generally associated with
A) eukaryotic cells.
B) nutrient transport.
C) chemotaxis.
D) clustering of certain rod-shaped bacteria. Answer: C) chemotaxis.
◉ The morphology of a cell influences its
A) motility.
B) metabolism.
C) surface-to-volume ratio.
,D) motility and surface-to-volume ratio. Answer: D) motility and
surface-to-volume ratio.
◉ Compared to Eukaryotes, Bacteria and Archaea have ________
surface-to-volume ratios, causing ________ nutrient exchange and
growth rates.
A) lower / lower
B) lower / higher
C) higher / lower
D) higher / higher. Answer: D) higher/higher
◉ The cytoplasmic membrane could best be described as
A) an impermeable barrier.
B) a passive conduit for intracellular transport.
C) a highly selective permeability barrier.
D) a rigid structure that protects the cell. Answer: C) a highly selective
permeability barrier.
◉ The use of the Gram stain in microbiology is important because it
differentiates
A) Bacteria from Archaea.
B) prokaryotic from eukaryotic cells.
C) bacterial cells with different types of cell walls.
, D) archaeal cells with different types of metabolism. Answer: C)
bacterial cells with different types of cell walls.
◉ Some archaea have unique phospholipids in their cytoplasmic
membrane that
A) form a monolayer due to the presence of diglycerol tetraethers.
B) form a bilayer due to the presence of sterols.
C) form a stable ring structure due to the presence of crenarchaeol.
D) form a bilayer due to the presence of phosphatidylethanolamine.
Answer: A) form a monolayer due to the presence of diglycerol
tetraethers.
◉ Carrier-mediated transport is necessary when
A) diffusion will not allow adequate amounts of a substance to enter the
cell.
B) movement into the cell is against a concentration gradient.
C) the level of nutrients in nature is very low.
D) nutrient concentration is very low in the environment, is higher inside
of the cell, or diffusion is not possible. Answer: D) nutrient
concentration is very low in the environment, is higher inside of the cell,
or diffusion is not possible.
◉ Nutrient transport requires energy because the nutrients must be
transported into the cell against a concentration gradient. The energy
required for nutrient transport is supplied by
ACTUAL EXAM 2026 QUESTIONS WITH
ANSWERS ALREADY PASSED
◉ Bacteria with type IV pili
A) possess tubular or stalk-like extensions of their cells.
B) likely exhibit twitching motility.
C) have capsules that promote dehydration.
D) live in aquatic environments. Answer: B) likely exhibit twitching
motility.
◉ The terms "run" and "tumble" are generally associated with
A) eukaryotic cells.
B) nutrient transport.
C) chemotaxis.
D) clustering of certain rod-shaped bacteria. Answer: C) chemotaxis.
◉ The morphology of a cell influences its
A) motility.
B) metabolism.
C) surface-to-volume ratio.
,D) motility and surface-to-volume ratio. Answer: D) motility and
surface-to-volume ratio.
◉ Compared to Eukaryotes, Bacteria and Archaea have ________
surface-to-volume ratios, causing ________ nutrient exchange and
growth rates.
A) lower / lower
B) lower / higher
C) higher / lower
D) higher / higher. Answer: D) higher/higher
◉ The cytoplasmic membrane could best be described as
A) an impermeable barrier.
B) a passive conduit for intracellular transport.
C) a highly selective permeability barrier.
D) a rigid structure that protects the cell. Answer: C) a highly selective
permeability barrier.
◉ The use of the Gram stain in microbiology is important because it
differentiates
A) Bacteria from Archaea.
B) prokaryotic from eukaryotic cells.
C) bacterial cells with different types of cell walls.
, D) archaeal cells with different types of metabolism. Answer: C)
bacterial cells with different types of cell walls.
◉ Some archaea have unique phospholipids in their cytoplasmic
membrane that
A) form a monolayer due to the presence of diglycerol tetraethers.
B) form a bilayer due to the presence of sterols.
C) form a stable ring structure due to the presence of crenarchaeol.
D) form a bilayer due to the presence of phosphatidylethanolamine.
Answer: A) form a monolayer due to the presence of diglycerol
tetraethers.
◉ Carrier-mediated transport is necessary when
A) diffusion will not allow adequate amounts of a substance to enter the
cell.
B) movement into the cell is against a concentration gradient.
C) the level of nutrients in nature is very low.
D) nutrient concentration is very low in the environment, is higher inside
of the cell, or diffusion is not possible. Answer: D) nutrient
concentration is very low in the environment, is higher inside of the cell,
or diffusion is not possible.
◉ Nutrient transport requires energy because the nutrients must be
transported into the cell against a concentration gradient. The energy
required for nutrient transport is supplied by
