Miscellaneous

Directions: Kindly read the passage carefully and answer the questions given beside.

The newly-found Corbomycin and the lesser-known Complestatin have a never-before-seen way to kill
bacteria, which is achieved by blocking the function of the bacterial cell wall. The discovery comes from
a family of antibiotics called glycopeptides that are produced by soil bacteria.

The researchers also demonstrated in mice that these new antibiotics can block infections caused by the
drug resistant Staphylococcus Aaureus which is a group of bacteria that can cause many serious
infections.

"Bacteria have a wall around the outside of their cells that gives them shape and is a source of strength,"
said study first author Beth Culp, a PhD candidate in biochemistry and biomedical sciences at McMaster.

"Antibiotics like penicillin kill bacteria by preventing building of the wall, but the antibiotics that we
found actually work by doing the _________ (A) -- they prevent the wall from being broken down. This is
critical for cell to divide.

"In order for a cell to grow, it has to divide and expand. If you completely block the breakdown of the
wall, it is like it is trapped in a prison, and can't expand or grow."

Looking at the family tree of known members of the glycopeptides, researchers studied the genes of
those lacking known resistance mechanisms, with the idea they might be an antibiotic demonstrating a
different way to attack bacteria.

"We hypothesized that if the genes that made these antibiotics were different, maybe the way they
killed the bacteria was also different," said Culp.

The group confirmed that the bacterial wall was the site of action of these new antibiotics using cell
imaging techniques in collaboration with Yves Brun and his team from the Université de Montréal.

Culp said: "This approach can be applied to other antibiotics and help us discover new ones with
different mechanisms of action. We found one completely new antibiotic in this study, but since then,
we've found a few others in the same family that have this same new mechanism."
Moderate

Which of the following can be inferred from the passage?

I. No discovery is the final discovery.

II. Indian scientists and researchers are not as advanced and capable as developed countries ones.

III. Bacteria are stronger than our imagination.

Only II

Only I

I and III

Only III

None of I, II and III

Ans. B

Statement I. No discovery is the final discovery.

Refer to:

The newly-found Corbomycin and the lesser-known Complestatin have a never-before-seen way to kill
bacteria,

… We found one completely new antibiotic in this study, but since then, we've found a few others in
the same family that have this same new mechanism.

The highlighted parts above clearly indicate that discoveries or finding something new while working on
a particular idea or research work is a continuous process. We can definitely say that ‘No discovery is the
final discovery.’ Thus, statement I can be inferred from the passage.

Statement II. Indian scientists and researchers are not as advanced and capable as developed countries
ones.

Statement II can’t be inferred as nothing about the Indian scientists has been mentioned in the passage.

Statement III. Bacteria are stronger than our imagination.

Statement III can’t be inferred either. The passage doesn’t talk about the strength of different types of
Bacteria.

Option B is hence the correct answer.

Easy

Which of the following word can fill in the blank marked as (A) in the passage?

exact

same

opposite

extraordinary

work

Ans. C

Refer to:

"Antibiotics like penicillin kill bacteria by preventing building of the wall, but the antibiotics that we
found actually work by doing the _________ (A) -- they prevent the wall from being broken down. This is
critical for cell to divide.

If we read the above paragraph carefully, we can deduce from the keyword ‘but’ that the blank must be
filled in by a word opposite to what’s been stated initially in the sentence.

Among the available choices ‘opposite’ fills in the blank most appropriately.

Option C is hence the correct answer.

Easy

Which of the following is an antonym of the word ‘Trapped’ as given in bold in the passage?

Clustered

Released

Vanished

Nimble

None of the above

Ans. B

Clustered means ‘Growing or situated in a group.’

Vanished means ‘finished’.

Nimble means ‘Quick’.

Clearly, ‘Released’ which means ‘free’ or ‘liberated’ is the correct antonym of the word ‘trapped’.

Option B is hence the correct answer.

Moderate

Which of the following is not true with respect to the passage?

I. All the antibiotics kill the bacteria in the same fashion.

II. Antibiotics called glycopeptides are produced by soil bacteria.

III. As per the research, a cell’s division is important for its expansion.

Only II

Only I

Both I and III

Both II and III

None of I, II and III is true

Ans. B

Statement I. All the antibiotics kill the bacteria in the same fashion.

Refer to:

… with the idea they might be an antibiotic demonstrating a different way to attack bacteria …

Clearly, different antibiotics work differently towards killing bacteria. The above fragment confirms that
the statement I is false.

Statement II. Antibiotics called glycopeptides are produced by soil bacteria.

Refer to:

… from a family of antibiotics called glycopeptides that are produced by soil bacteria.

Evidently, statement II is true.

Statement III. As per the research, a cell’s division is important for its expansion.

Refer to:

"In order for a cell to grow, it has to divide and expand. …

The reference taken above clearly implies that a cell’s division is important for its expansion. Thus,
statement III is also true.

Option B is hence the correct answer.

Difficult

Which of the following summarizes the whole passage most appropriately?

A group of antibiotics with a weak approach to attacking bacteria has been discovered, making it a not
so satisfactory clinical candidate in the fight against antimicrobial resistance.

A group of antibiotics with various characteristics of it matching with already existing groups, has been
discovered, making it a promising clinical candidate in the fight against antimicrobial resistance.

A new group of antibiotics with a unique approach to attacking bacteria has been discovered, making it a
promising clinical candidate in the fight against antimicrobial resistance.

A new group of antibiotics with a unique approach to attacking bacteria has been discovered, though it
is yet to prove its viability in the fight against antimicrobial resistance.

None of the above

Ans. C

The presence of keywords/phrases like – ‘New’, ‘Unique approach’, ‘attacking bacteria’, ‘discovered’, ‘a
promising clinical candidate’, ‘fight against antimicrobial resistance’ makes option C is the most
appropriate summary of the given passage.

Option D could have been the correct choice, has the phrase ‘it is yet to prove its viability’ not been
there.

Option C is hence the correct answer.