Circadian rhythms drive human and animal behaviors, such as

activity, sleep, metabolism, and mating. A scientist hypothesizes that

exposure to light and dark regulate these rhythms by altering the
production of a hormone called melatonin. To evaluate the
importance of light and dark in regulating circadian rhythms, the
scientist conducts a set of experiments.

Experiment 1
Over the course of one week, the scientist encloses three mice and
exposes them to 24-hour periods of varying exposure to light and
dark. During each 24-hour period, the mice receive 12 consecutive
hours of artificial light and 12 consecutive hours of complete
darkness. At 15- minute intervals, the scientist notes the activity
levels of the mice and records his findings. Furthermore, every 15
minutes during Day 7, the scientist collects a small blood sample
from the mice to measure their level of melatonin.
At the end of one week, the scientist graphs the mice’s activity levels
in Figure 1, with black bars indicating the periods of continuous
activity. The scientist then graphs the mice’s levels of melatonin as
shown in Figure 2.
Experiment 2
The scientist then conducts a similar experiment in which he studies
the activity levels of mice exposed only to darkness over the course
of one week. Figure 3 graphs the mice’s resulting activity levels, and
Figure 2 records their melatonin levels on Day 7.
1. Approximately how long were the mice active each day during
Experiment 1?
(A) 10 hours
(B) 6 hours
(C) 18 hours
(D) 24 hours

2. What aspect of the study was varied between Experiments 1 and

2? Compared to Experiment 1, in Experiment 2
(A) the number of mice used was greater
(B) the amount of daily mouse activity decreased
(C) the mice experienced only darkness
(D) the mice experienced equal daily exposure to light and darkness

3. Based on the results of both experiments, which of these

statements is a valid conclusion the scientist could reach?
(A) Mice are more active during the day than during the night.
(B) Peak melatonin levels in mice closely coincide with the onset of
periods of inactivity.
(C) Mice produce more melatonin during the day than during the
night.
(D) There is no clear relationship between melatonin production and
activity levels in mice.

4. The scientist conducts a third experiment during which the mice

experience darkness from hours 0 to 12 and light from hours 13 to
23. Based on the results of Experiments 1 and 2, when would peak
melatonin production most likely occur on Day 7?
(A) Hour 18
(B) Hour 5
(C) Hour 1
(D) Hour 0

5. The scientist wants to conduct another experiment to support to

his
hypothesis. Which of the following experiments would best provide
that additional support?(A) Repeat the two experiments with two
mice.
(B) Repeat Experiment 2 but with 24 hours of daily light exposure.
(C) Repeat Experiment 1 and measure oxygen levels in the blood
instead of melatonin.
(D) Repeat Experiment 2 with 12 hours of daily light exposure and
12 hours of daily darkness.
6. Melatonin pills have been approved for use in humans. Based on
information in the passage, when should a physician advise his
patients to take melatonin pills if they wanted to get a better night’s
sleep?
(A) Before bedtime
(B) In the morning
(C) With meals
(D) Every 4 hours

7. If the scientist had collected melatonin levels over the course of

Day 4 during Experiment 2, what would most likely represent the
graph for melatonin level?
(A)

(B)

(C)
(D)
The Krebs Cycle is a key part of metabolism that helps create energy
for cells. To start the cycle (shown in Figure 1), a 2-carbon molecule
called Acetyl-CoA (created from Glucose) is combined with a 4-
carbon molecule (Oxaloacetate) to create a 6-carbon molecule
(Citrate). Over the course of the rest of the cycle, the energy stored
in Citrate is used to create other molecules (NADH, FADH2 and
GTP), all of which go on to produce ATP, the primary energy source
of the cell, as documented in Table 1.

TABLE 1
Molecule ATP created per 1/molecule
NADH 2.5
FADH2 1.5
GTP 1

A scientist, using an exact measuring system, applied different

amounts of glucose to a cell and measured the resulting outputs from
the Krebs Cycle. The results are recorded in Table 2.

TABLE 2
Number of Number of Number of Number of Number of
Glucose Acetyl CoA NADH GTP FADH2
Molecules Created created created Created
Applied
1 2 6 2 2
10 20 60 20 20
20 40 120 40 40
30 60 180 60 60

1. Based on the results of the experiment and information in the

passage, how many NADH are produced per one turn of the Krebs
Cycle?
(A) 1
(B) 2
(C) 3
(D) 6
2. In the experiment described in the passage, what is the
independent variable?
(A) Number of Glucose molecules applied
(B) Number of Oxaloacetate molecules created
(C) Number of Acetyl-CoA created
(D) Number of turns of Krebs Cycle

3. A certain cell needs 600 ATP to survive for a day. Based on

information in the passage, how many Glucose molecules will the
cell need for the day?
(A) 1
(B) 10
(C) 20
(D) 30

4. The scientist has isolated the step in the Krebs Cycle that occurs
between Citrate and Oxaloacetate. She notes that in addition to
NADH, FADH2 , and GTP, the 1-carbon gas is also created.
How many molecules of this gas are likely created in this step?
(A) 1
(B) 2
(C) 3
(D) 4
5. The scientist finds that ATP inhibits the reaction between
Oxaloacetate and Acetyl-CoA. What effect does this reaction have
on NADH production?
(A) It increases because more Citrate is produced.
(B) It decreases because more Acetyl-CoA is produced.
(C) It decreases because less Citrate is produced.
(D) It increases because more Glucose is used.

6. Removal of which molecule would have the most significant

effect on cellular ATP production?
(A) GTP
(B) NADH
(C) FADH2
(D) Acetyl-CoA

7. Which is the most appropriate graph of the relationship between

number of glucose molecules applied and number of FADH2 created
during the experiment?
(A)

(B)
(C)