VERY SHORT ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS (1 Mark)

1. What is menstruation?
Ans - The breakdown and removal of the inner,thick and soft lining of the uterus along with its
blood vessels in the form of vaginal bleeding is called Menstrual flow or menstruation or
periods.

2. Name the information source of making proteins in the cell. State two basic events in
reproduction.
Ans - The DNA in the cell nucleus is the information source for making proteins. The two
basic events of reproduction are : (i) Creation of a DNA (ii) Additional cellular apparatus by the
cell involved in the process.

3. State the method used for growing rose plants.

Ans - Rose can be grown using the stem cutting in which a branch is sliced from the main
stem and put in soil.

4. Can you consider cell division as a type of reproduction in unicellular organisms?

Give one reason.
Ans - Yes, because it results in the formation of two daughter cells, i.e., it results in the
production of more individuals of the organism.

5. What is a clone? Why do offsprings formed by asexual reproduction exhibit

remarkable similarity?
Ans. Clone refers to offspring of an organism formed by asexual method of reproduction.
Since they possess exact copies of the DNA of their parents, clones exhibit remarkable
similarity.

6. Why does bread mould grow profusely on a moist slice of bread rather than on a dry
slice of bread?
Ans. Moisture is an important factor for the growth of hyphae. Moistened bread slice offers
both moisture and nutrients to the bread mould, hence it grows profusely. Dry slice of bread
offers nutrients but not moisture hence hyphae fail to grow.

7. Reproduction is linked to stability of the population of species. Justify?

Ans - In reproduction, DNA passes from one generation to next. Copying of a DNA takes
place with consistency but with minor variations. This consistency leads to stability of species.

8. Trace the path of sperm during ejaculation and mention the gland and their functions
associated with the male reproductive system.
Ans - Sperm comes out from testis into the vas deferens and then passes through urethra
before ejaculation. The secretions of seminal vesicle and prostate glands provide nutrition to
the sperms and also facilitate their transport.

9. "Use of condom is beneficial for both the sex is involved in a sexual act". Justify the
statement giving two reasons.
Ans - (i) It avoids unwanted births.
(ii) It protects from sexually transmitted diseases.

10. What is selective abortion? How does it affect a healthy society? (State any one
consequence)
Ans - Abortion of particular sex (specially female) is known as sex selective abortion. Due to
this, the number of females are decreasing in the society.

11. In a bisexual flower, inspite of the young stamen being removed artificially, the
flower produces fruit. Provide a suitable explanation for the above situation.
Ans - In the absence of stamens, self pollination is not possible but cross pollination occurs
leading to fertilization and formation of fruit.

12. Define parthenogenesis?

Ans - Development of an organism from an unfertilized egg.
13. What is callus?
Ans. In artificial vegetative propagation, an isolated plant part called explants is cultured in
glass containers under aseptic conditions with proper nutrient medium. The explants develop
into undifferentiated masses of cells called callus.

14. List two important functions of gonads.

Ans. a) It produces gametes in male and female
b) It produces sex hormones

15. What are the advantages of sexual reproduction over asexual reproduction?
Ans. Sexual reproduction leads to variation due to recombination of genetic material DNA
These variations are essential for survival of species. On the contrary, asexual reproduction
does not bring about variations.

16. What are sexually transmitted diseases?

Ans - Sexually transmitted diseases are infectious diseases transmitted through sexual
contact. AIDS, Gonorrhea, syphilis, are few commonly known STDs.

SHORT ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS (2 Marks)

1. Write two important functions of testosterone.

Ans - Testosterone is important for the physical changes that happen during male
puberty, such as development of the penis and testes.Testosterone also acts on cells
in the testes to make sperm.

2. What is placenta ? Also write its functions.

Ans - The placenta is a flattened circular organ in the uterus of pregnant mammals that
nourishes and maintains the fetus through the umbilical cord. It provides oxygen and
nutrients to the growing baby and removes waste products.

3. Why is vegetative propagation practiced for growing some types of plants?

Ans - (i)It helps to introduce plants in new areas where seed germination fails to
produce mature plants due to changes in environmental factors and the soil.
(ii)It is a more rapid, easier, and cheaper method.

4. Write names of male and female sex hormones.

Ans - The male sex hormone is 'testosterone' and the female sex hormones are
'estrogen' and 'progesterone'.

5. Mention the parts of a flower.

Ans - Most flowers have four main parts: sepals, petals, stamens, and carpels. The
stamens are the male part whereas the carpels are the female part of the flower.

6. Differentiate between bisexual and unisexual flowers.

Ans - A unisexual flower is defined as a flower that possesses either stamens or
carpels. They do not have both stamens and carpels. For example, papaya, coconut
flowers etc. Bisexual flowers are those flowers which possess both stamens and
carpels. Within the same inflorescence, male and female reproductive parts are
present. For example, lily, rose etc.

7. Name one sexually transmitted disease each caused due to bacterial infection and
viral infection. How can these be prevented?
Ans - (i) Bacterial infection: Gonorrhoea and warts.
(ii) Viral infection: AIDS (Acquired ImmunoDeficiency Syndrome) and Syphilis.
These can be prevented by:
(a) Using mechanical barriers such as condoms, cervical caps, diaphragms, etc. ...
(b) Spreading awareness through education at different levels.

8. What is regeneration? State a reason why a more complex organism cannot give rise
to new individuals through this method.
Ans - Regeneration is the ability of a fully differentiated organism to give rise to new
individual organisms from its body parts. More complex organisms cannot give rise to
new individuals through regeneration because:
i) Their body is highly complicated.
ii) There are specific organs to do specific functions.

9. How does a growing embryo get nutrition from the mother’s blood?
Ans - Embryo derives its nourishment from the mother's blood through the placenta.
Placenta contains villi on the side of the embryo and blood vessels surrounding villi on
the side of the mother. Oxygen and glucose pass from the mother to the embryo
through the placenta.

10. Define the term puberty. List two changes observed in girls at the time of puberty.
Ans - Puberty is a stage when the boy and the girl attains sexual maturity and the sex
hormones begin to produce. The various changes observed in the girls at the time of
puberty are:
1. Development of mammary glands
2. Enlargement of menstruation parts.

11. Name an organism which reproduces by spore formation. List three conditions
favourable for spores to germinate and grow.
Ans - Rhizopus reproduces by spore formation. Conditions favourable for spore
formation are: (i) Cool place, (ii) Moist place and (iii) Dark place

12. List the parts of the human male reproductive system which contribute fluid to the
semen. State two advantages semen offers to the sperms.
Ans - The glands of the male reproductive system produce sperm and seminal fluid.
The prostate gland and seminal vesicles contribute seminal fluid to semen, which
carries and protects the sperm.

13. Name the two types of germ-cells present in human beings. How do they
structurally differ from each other? Give two differences.
Ans - The two types of germ-cells present in human beings are sperm and ova. The
sperm of humans have either X or Y chromosomes. The ova always carries an X
chromosome. The sperm is structurally long with a tail. The ova is round in structure.

14. How are general growth and sexual maturation different from each other?
Ans. General growth refers to different types of developmental processes in the body
like increase in height, weight gain, changes in shape and size of the body. But sexual
maturation is specific to changes reflected at puberty like cracking of voice, new hair
patterns in males and development of breasts in females, etc.

15. Reproduction is essentially a phenomenon that is not for survival of an individual

but for the stability of a species. Justify.
Ans. (a) Organisms need energy for survival which they obtain from life processes
such as nutrition and respiration.
(b) Reproduction needs a lot of energy.
(c) Genetic material is transferred from one generation to next as a result of
reproduction through DNA copying.
(d) DNA copying takes place with high constancy and considerable variations, that is,
advantages to the species for stability in the changing environment.

16. List two preparations shown every month by the uterus in anticipation of pregnancy
in humans.
Ans - i) The wall of the uterus becomes thick so as to receive the fertilised egg.
ii) The embryo is embedded in the uterine wall and gets nutrition from the mother's
blood with the help of a special tissue called placenta.

17. Name the information source of making proteins in the cell. State two basic events
in reproduction.
Ans- The DNA in the cell nucleus is the information source of making proteins.
The two basic events in reproduction are:
(i) Creation of a DNA copy,
(ii) Additional cellular apparatus by the cell involved in the process.

18. How are the modes of reproduction different in unicellular and multicellular
organisms?
Ans. In unicellular organisms, cell division, or fusion leads to the creation of new
individuals.
In multicellular organisms with simple body organization budding, fragmentation may
work but in complex multicellular organisms only sexual reproduction takes place.

19. How does reproduction help in providing stability to populations of species?

Ans. The consistency of DNA copying during reproduction is important for the
maintenance
of body design features that allow the organism to use the particular niche.
Reproduction is, therefore, linked to the stability to populations of species

20. A girl attains her puberty at the age of 11 years and a boy at 13 years but still they
are asked to refrain from sex, why?
Ans. They are asked to refrain from sex because:
1. They are not physically, emotionally mature enough to be able to bear the
responsibility of the child.
2. They may suffer from reproductive tract infections.