MOLECULAR AND CELL BIOLOGY (MLB) 133

SEMESTER TEST 2 4 MAY 2017 TOTAL MARKS: 50

NUMBER OF PAGES: 9 TIME: 1 HOUR 30 MINUTES

SURNAME & INITIALS……………………………………………………………

SIGNATURE……………………………………………………..

                  
STUDENT NO 
GROUP…...........

PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING INSTRUCTIONS CAREFULLY

1. This paper consists of 5 questions on 12 pages.
Please check that your question paper is complete.
2. Read the questions carefully.
3. Answer all the questions in black or blue pen.
4. Do not use a pencil to draw diagrams.
5. It is in your own interest to write legibly and to present your work neatly.
6. Tippex / correction fluid may not be used. Cross out the errors with a pen.

QUESTION MAXIMUM MARKS

NUMBER MARKS OBTAINED

1 10
Examiners:
2 10
Dr. Jane Wright
3 10
Dr. Jeyanthi Gopalraj
4 10

5 10

TOTAL 50
 

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SECTION A (MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS)

QUESTION 1
Choose the correct answer from the alternatives given. Circle the correct
letter corresponding to the correct answer.

1.1 A (n) ________ is a permeable underground layer of rock, sand, and

gravel saturated with groundwater.

A. natural spring
B. aquifer
C. hot spring
D. submergence
1.2 What feature do the carbon and nitrogen cycles have in common?

A. a large atmospheric component

B. involvement in global climate change
C. often a limiting nutrient
D. mostly local cycling
1.3 Which of the following are examples of diffuse pollution? Circle all that
apply.

A. chemicals released from a factory waste pipe

B. wind-borne debris blowing out to sea
C. pet waste
D. oil leaking from a cargo ship
1.4 CO2 and other gases, which absorb the longer wavelengths of infrared
light and radiated heat from Earth, are responsible for causing the

A. ozone layer depletion.

B. greenhouse effect.
C. decreased biodiversity.
D. acid rain.
1.5 Characteristics between the branch points of a cladogram that are shared
by all organisms above the branch point and are not present in any below
it are called

A. homologous characters.
B. ancestral characters.
C. derived characters.
D. novel characters.

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1.6

Based on the phylogeny shown above, we can conclude that species 2 is

most closely related to species
A. 1.
B. 3.
C. 4.
D. 5.
1.7 A group is considered polyphyletic if

A. all members of the group share a common ancestor.

B. not all descendants of the common ancestor are included.
C. all members share homoplastic traits.
D. the group does not contain the most recent common ancestor.
1.8 The evolution of conducting tubes (sieve tubes) in land plants and brown
algae is an example of

A. homoplasy caused by convergence.

C. homoplasy caused by evolutionary reversal.
D. homology caused by convergence.
E. homology caused by evolutionary reversal.
1.9 Which of the following accounts for someone who has had a herpes virus-
mediated cold sore or genital sore getting flare-ups for the rest of life?

A. re-infection by a closely related herpes virus of a different strain.

B. re-infection by the same herpes virus strain.
C. copies of the herpes virus genome permanently maintained in host
nuclei.
D. copies of the herpes virus genome permanently maintained in host cell
cytoplasm.
1.10 Diseases such as scrapie in sheep, "mad cow" disease in cattle, and
Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in humans are known as

A. Viroids.
C. TB
D. TSEs (transmissible spongiform encephalopathies).
E. Ebola
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 SECTION B

QUESTION 2

2.1. Study the taxonomic ranking below and answer the questions.
Eukaryote, Metazoa, Cordata, Mammalia, Artiodactyla, Hippopotamidae,
Hippopotamus, Hippopotamus amphibius

2.1.1 To which family does this animal belong? (1)

………………………………………………

2.1.2 What is the specific epithet of this animal? (1)

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2.1.3 To which order does this animal belong? (1)

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2.2.

Using the dichotomous key, identify the name of the cnidarians labelled C.
(2)

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2.3 Hikers found a tree that has large brown cones and single sharp needles.
Using the dichotomous key for trees provided what species of tree have
the hikers found? (2)

1 a. cones are small Juniper

b. cones are large Go to step 2
2 a. needles are single Go to step 3
b. needles are in groups of 2 or more Pine
3 a. needles are sharp at the end Spruce
b. needles are rounded at the end Fir

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2.4 Define the following:

2.4.1 Classification (1)

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2.4.2 Identification (1)

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2.4.3 Naming (1)

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QUESTION 3
3.1 Define the following terms:

3.1.1 Ecosystem (1)

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3.1.2 Limiting nutrient (1)

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3.1.3 Abiotic (1)

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3.1.4 Community (1)

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3.1.5 Carbon fixation (1)

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3.2. Place the letter in the appropriate blank (½ each – 5 maximum)

A. Detritivores B. Nutrients
C. Primary producer D. Secondary consumer
E. Nutrients in the soil F. Tertiary consumer
G. Primary consumer H. Heat
I. Solar energy J.Conversion into biomass
K. Carbon fixation

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QUESTION 4
4.1. Now you are the systematist, performing a phylogenetic systematic
analysis on a group of imaginary beetles. Assume that you have prior
knowledge that taxon A is more distantly related to the others than any of
the others are to one another. This means that A would be a good choice
for an outgroup.

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 Score the following matrix. Give all characters a state of "0" for ancestral
(same as outgroup) and "1" for derived (different from outgroup). (4)

Character A B C D

Large jaws present

Small antennae present

Spots present

Stripes present

4.2.1 Which of these characters function as synapomorphies in this matrix? (1)

………………………………………………………………………………………

4.2.2 What groups do they diagnose? (1)

………………………………………………………………………………………

Which character tells us nothing about the relationships of these

4.2.3
animals? (1)

………………………………………………………………………………………

4.3 Draw a cladogram showing the relationships of these beetles. Make sure
it is the simplest possible tree, invoking the fewest possible character state
changes. Indicate the character state changes on the cladogram. (3)

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 QUESTION 5
5.1. What is the basis of the evolutionary hypothesis that although viruses are
the simplest organisms, they were not the first living organisms? (2)

………………………………………………………………………………………

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5.2. What characteristics do viruses share with all living things?(2)

………………………………………………………………………………………

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5.3. What are virulent phages. Give an example?(3)

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5.4 What is viroid? Name the plants in which they cause diseases?(3)
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