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AP Biology
Forsyth
Test – Cell Signaling, Body Systems & Behavior
3. Testosterone and estrogen are lipid-soluble signal
molecules that cross the plasma membrane by simple
diffusion. If these molecules can enter all cells, why do
only specific cells respond to their presence?
A. Nontarget cells lack the intracellular receptors that,
when activated by the signal molecule, can interact with
genes in the cell's nucleus.
B. Nontarget cells possess enzymes that immediately
degrade the molecules as they enter the cell.
C. The signal molecules diffuse from the cell before an
effective concentration can be achieved.
D. Nontarget cells lack the inactive enzymes that the
signal molecules activate.
4. During the infection cycle for a typical retrovirus,
such as HIV, which uses RNA as genetic material, the
genetic variation in the resulting population of new
virus particles is very high because of
A. recombination of the genomes of free virus particles.
B. errors introduced in the DNA molecule through
reverse transcription.
C. errors in the protein molecules produced in
translation.
D. damage to the virus particle from envelope loss
during infection.
5. A microbiologist analyzes chemicals obtained from an
enveloped RNA virus that infects monkeys. He finds that
the viral envelope contains a protein characteristic of
monkey cells. Which of the following is the most likely
explanation?
A. The viral envelope forms as the virus leaves the host
cell.
B. The virus forced the monkey cell to make proteins for
its envelope.
C. Its presence is a result of the monkey’s
immunological response.
D. The virus fools the host by mimicking its proteins.
6. Is an allergy (to pollen, bees, peanuts, etc) a normal
body function or a disruption of body function?
A. An allergy is a normal body function that returns the
immune system to homeostasis.
B. An allergy is a disruption of normal body function
when the immune system overreacts to a particular
antigen.
C. An allergy is a disruption of normal body function
when the immune system is inactivated and cannot
fight a particular antigen.
D. An allergy is a disruption of normal body function
when the immune system identifies a foreign antigen as
one of the body’s own self proteins.
7. Most nerve cells communicate with others by means
of:
A. electrical signals that pass across synapses.
B. chemical signals that pass across synapses.
C. bursts of pressure that bump the postsynaptic cell
membrane.
D. sodium ions as they are released from one cell and
enter the next.
8. Every time you eat a cookie or candy bar, your blood
sugar increases. This triggers an increase in the
hormone
A. insulin.
B. epinephrine.
C. glycogen.
D. glucagon.
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Forsyth
11. Douglas and Kevin are sitting next to each other in
the lunch room. Conrad sits down across from them,
and then sneezes hard, spraying droplets of viralinfected saliva over both Douglas and Kevin’s faces. By
the next week, Douglas is feeling awful, sneezing
everywhere, and stays sick for about two weeks. On the
other hand, Kevin has a few minor symptoms for a
couple days, but recovers very quickly.
Which is NOT a possible reason why Douglas gets sicker
than Kevin?
A. There is genetic variation between people in regards
to their immune system cells; Kevin had genes that
could make the correct immune system response to
fight this particular virus.
B. Kevin had already been exposed to a similar virus
before, and had memory B cells that were primed to
produce an appropriate antibody.
C. Kevin’s non-specific immune system, including his
skin and antiviral proteins in his own saliva, may have
prevented most of the virus from entering his
respiratory cells.
D. Kevin doesn’t have any allergies, so he doesn’t
sneeze or show any symptoms of viral disease.
12. When B cells are developed in the bone marrow, an
undifferentiated stem cell divides and differentiates to
form a specific type of B cell. During differentiation,
segments of antibody genes are linked together by a
type of genetic recombination, generating a “new” gene
for each polypeptide within the new antibody. This
process, which occurs before any contact with foreign
antigens, creates an enormous variety of B cells is the
body, each with the capability of making a different
type of antibody.
Which is the best description of why this variety of B
cells is helpful to human beings?
A. When exposed to an antigen, a B cell will mutate to
form the antibody to fight that antigen.
B. If an individual human is infected with an antigen,
they will probably already have a specific B cell
prepared to attack that particular antigen.
C. The B cells are active in the nonspecific defense
system, and this variety prevents a wide range of
antigens from entering the body.
D. Each B cell can make hundreds of different shaped
antibodies, to fight different possible sources of
infection.
13. The rhinovirus – or common cold – is made up of
single-stranded RNA. HIV is also composed of singlestranded RNA, yet colds are not life-threatening and are
usually cleared from a human body within a week or
two, while HIV persists for the life of the person. Which
of the following is a reasonable conclusion for the
differences of these two viruses?
A. The RNA of a cold virus begins replication
immediately to produce more RNA and proteins,
whereas the HIV RNA is converted to DNA and joins
with the host cell’s DNA.
B. The RNA of a cold virus can join directly to the DNA of
the host cell, but it is rejected quickly by the host,
whereas the RNA of HIV does the same and has a
method to avoid the defenses of the host cell.
C. The RNA of HIV is transported directly to the nucleus
and incorporated into the host cell’s DNA, but the cold
virus stays in the cytoplasm as RNA, eventually
degraded by the host cell’s defenses.
D. Both viruses convert their RNA to DNA and join with
the host cell’s DNA, but the cold virus DNA degrades
over time and is thus removed from the host naturally.
14. Prior to going to college, students are required to be
checked for Tuberculosis (TB) – an infection of the lungs
by bacteria that is highly resistant to antibiotics. The
test is done by injecting a purified protein that is
associated with the bacteria under the skin and looking
for an inflammatory response. Josie is from the
Bahamas where TB is more common and was
vaccinated with BCG - a weakened form of the bacteria.
She has never contracted TB. Josie decides to attend
school in Florida and must do a TB test. Which of the
following is a logical prediction of the results she should
expect?
A. She will have no inflammatory reaction to the protein
since she has been vaccinated once and has never
contracted TB.
B. She will have no inflammatory reaction to the protein
since the strains of TB in the islands are different than
the bacterial strains in Florida.
C. She will have an inflammatory reaction to the protein
since her body has made antibodies to the TB protein
that she was vaccinated with as a child.
D. She will have an inflammatory reaction to the protein
because even after being vaccinated as a child, she was
around people with TB.
AP Biology
Forsyth
15. Small pox is a type of virus that has a doublestranded, DNA core. HIV is a retrovirus with an RNA
core. Small pox vaccines have been around since the
very late 1700s, with the virus known to have been in
humans for much longer. HIV is believed to have
emerged in the late 1800s, yet we have no vaccine for it
200 years later. Which of the following is the most
reasonable explanation for this?
A. RNA must convert to DNA in the HIV virus, which
makes it more difficult for scientists to develop a
vaccine to the RNA.
B. RNA must convert to DNA and there is no
proofreading of the code done by reverse transcriptase,
causing more mutations.
C. Small pox DNA is more variable than the RNA of HIV,
so scientists can create a wider range of proteins
produced by the virus for vaccines.
D. RNA of HIV is single-stranded, and mutates more
rapidly, whereas pox viruses have double-stranded DNA
so their mutation rate is lower.
16. There are many different strains of the flu virus. The
1918 flu, or H1N1, is similar to the swine flu, also
designated H1N1. The 1918 flu killed millions of people
worldwide, yet the swine flu did not cause such
widespread deaths. In terms of the structure of the
viruses, which one of the following is a reasonable
conclusion for the differences?
A. The receptors for the swine flu strain were only
found in the upper respiratory tract, which is easier to
treat rather than the 1918 flu which bound to receptors
deeper in the lungs where it was difficult to treat.
B. The swine flu was a milder version of the 1918 flu
and so did not cause the extreme symptoms of the 1918
strain.
C. People survived the 1918 flu and their descendants
already had antibodies to the swine flu, so only people
without the antibodies got sick from the swine flu.
D. The 1918 flu was able to replicate more rapidly than
the swine flu, allowing it to spread to more cells more
quickly, causing death.
17. Plants can also get viruses in their lifetime. Which of
the following is an example of vertical transmission of a
plant virus, such as tobacco mosaic virus?
A. Viral particles are carried by the wind from one plant
to another.
B. Viral particles are carried from one plant to another
by a pair of pruning shears.
C. Two neighboring plants touch each other, allowing
the viruses in one plant to infect the other plant.
D. An infected plant produces seeds that contain the
virus, giving rise to infected progeny (offspring).
18. At puberty, an adolescent female body changes in
both structure and function of several organ systems,
primarily under the influence of changing
concentrations of estrogens and other steroid
hormones. How can one hormone, such as estrogen,
mediate so many effects?
A. Estrogen is produced in very large concentration and
therefore diffuses widely.
B. Estrogen binds to specific receptors inside many
kinds of cells, each of which have different responses to
its binding.
C. Estrogen is kept away from the surface of any cells
not able to bind it at the surface.
D. Estrogen has specific receptors inside several cell
types, but each cell responds in the same way to its
binding.
19. Although many chimpanzee populations live in
environments containing oil palm nuts, members of
only a few populations use stones to crack open the
nuts. The most likely explanation for this behavioral
difference between populations is that
A. the behavioral difference is caused by genetic
differences between populations.
B. members of different populations have different
nutritional requirements.
C. the cultural tradition of using stones to crack nuts has
only arisen in some populations.
D. members of different populations differ in learning
ability.
20. Which of the following is not required for a
behavioral trait to evolve by natural selection?
A. In each individual, the form of the behavior is
determined entirely by genes.
B. The behavior varies among individuals.
C. An individual’s reproductive success depends, in part,
on how the behavior is performed.
D. Some component of the behavior is genetically
inherited.
AP Biology
Forsyth
21. In cross-fostering experiments, offspring of two
species are switched early in development and reared
by the opposite species. They are then compared with
similar offspring reared by their own species. What is
the point of this experimental design?
A. This experimental design demonstrates that maternal
care is universal, no matter what offspring are receiving
care.
B. This experimental design separates the effects of
genetics and environment.
C. This experimental design reveals the source of
aggression.
D. This method can generate animals that behave as if
they were a different species, the parental one.
22. Ants carry dead ants out of an anthill and dump
them on a "trash" pile. If a chemical from a dead ant is
applied to a live ant, other ants will carry it, kicking and
struggling, from the anthill, until the substance wears
off. Which of the following explains this behavior?
A. The chemical triggers negative taxis.
B. The ants have become imprinted on the chemical.
C. The chemical is a sign stimulus for a fixed action
pattern.
D. The ants can only learn by operant conditioning.
Use the information below for the questions that follow.
Students placed 20 fruit flies into a container that had a
water soaked cotton ball on one side, and a cotton ball
soaked in a solution of sucrose (sugar water) on the
other. The flies were manipulated so they were in the
center of the chamber. Students collected data as to the
flies located every 20 seconds for 10 minutes. After 3.5
minutes, 15 flies were crawling on the honey soaked
cotton ball, and the other 5 were nearer to that side of
the chamber than to the water soaked cotton ball.
23. Which of the following is not a reasonable
conclusion from these results?
A. Fruit flies prefer sweet smells.
B. Fruit flies are attracted to items that have smells.
C. Fruit flies dehydrate easily.
D. Fruit flies need to time to explore their environment.
24. Students had made observations that fruit flies were
attracted to bananas, which also have high sucrose
content. Students made a filtrate of banana juice –
isolating the sucrose, and soaked the cotton balls with
equal amounts of the sucrose solution and the banana
sucrose solution. Which of the following is a logical
prediction and justification of their results?
A. Fruit flies will have a marked preference for the
banana filtrate, since it is a natural food source for
them.
B. Fruit flies will have a marked preference for the
sucrose solution, since it is pure sugar and easier for
them to digest.
C. Fruit flies will have no preference for either solution,
since they are identical to each other in content and
amount.
D. The students need to have a third station set up as a
control, so cannot make any predictions or conclusions
from this set up.
AP Biology
Forsyth
Use the information below for the question that follows.
Manatees are marine mammals, but unlike most others do not naturally form pods or family groups. Although quite
large, they actually have very little fat associated with their bodies. As such, they are capable of dying due to cold stress.
The graph below shows the number of manatees, over time, that accumulate near a warm water outflow from an
underwater spring in Blue Springs State Park in Florida.
This event seems to occur annually, with only slight differences in numbers reported, and correlate to water
temperatures in the surrounding oceans and rivers becoming lower.
25. Which of the following is the best description of this type of behavior and how it occurs?
A. This is considered migration and is taxis towards warmer water temperatures.
B. This is considered migration and is kinesis away from colder water temperatures.
C. This is not considered migration and is simply the time period manatees congregate to mate.
D. This is considered migration and is due to mating season.
26. Which of the following is an example of an antigen?
A. Proteins found in the blood that cause foreign blood
cells to clump.
B. Proteins embedded in B cell membranes.
C. Foreign molecules that trigger the generation of
antibodies.
D. Proteins that are released during the normal
inflammatory response.
27. A secondary immune response is more rapid and
greater in effect than a primary immune reponse
because
A. memory cells respond to the pathogen and rapidly
clone more effector cells.
B. helper T cells are available to activate other blood
cells.
C. the second reponse is an active immunity, whereas
the primary one was passive immunity.
D. chemical signals cause the rapid accumulation of
phagocytic cells.
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Forsyth
28. In the primary immune response to an antigen by an
antigen-presenting cell (such as a macrophage), the
helper T cell secrete chemicals called IL-2 (interleukin-2)
that cause other immune cells to increase in number. A
new strain of bacteria is infecting humans and it blocks
the IL-2 from interacting with the immune system cells.
Which of the following is a prediction of what would
happen if this bacterium were to get into a human?
A. The macrophage would not be able to present the
antigen to the helper T cell, so IL-2 would build up in the
body and no immune response would occur.
B. The helper T cell would be unable to receive the
signal from the macrophage, and the IL-2 it produced
would simply build up inside the body without causing
an immune response.
C. The T8 and B cells would not be able to interact with
the helper T cell, but would recognize the macrophage
and cause their own cell division to fight the bacterium.
D. The helper T cell would produce IL-2, but the
surrounding cells would no longer bind with the ligand
as it would not fit their receptors and no immune
response would occur.
29. A drug that causes potassium to leak out of a
neuron, increasing the positive charge on the outside,
would:
A. make it easier to trigger action potentials in the
neuron.
B. cause the cell to release its neurotransmitter and
trigger the next cell.
C. inhibit transmission of nerve signals by the neuron.
D. speed up the nerve signals traveling the length of the
cell.
30. Acetylcholinesterase is the enzyme that degrades
acetylcholine. Acetylcholine is the neurotransmitter
that is necessary for skeletal muscle movement to
occur. What effect on nerve transmission would occur
following the administration of a chemical that inhibited
acetylcholinesterase?
A. It would be identical to giving an anesthetic, but it
would last permanently.
B. Synaptic transmission would be prevented; muscle
paralysis would occur.
C. The presynaptic neuron would be completely
deactivated.
D. Extra excitatory postsynaptic potentials would occur
in the postsynaptic neuron.
31. Alcohol is a legal drug that, if abused, can lead to
many health problems. Its primary impact on the
nervous system is to open K+ channels, and it mimics
the neurotransmitter GABA, which has an inhibitory
affect on the axons of neurons. Which of the following
describes the impact on the action potential of neurons
that are exposed to large amounts of alcohol?
A. K+ ions continue to rush out of the cell, causing
massive depolarization of the cell and it releases
neurotransmitters in response.
B. K+ ions balance out between the interior and exterior
of the cell, delaying the formation of the resting
potential and causing depolarization.
C. K+ ions flow out of the cell, inhibiting the ability of the
neuron to reach its action potential and it causes
hyperpolarization of the neuron.
D. K+ ions interact with Na+ ions, and the cell
depolarizes, creating an action potential.
32. Glutamate is a neurotransmitter that is a general
excitatory postsynaptic neurotransmitter and is active
in all parts of the brain – especially regions associated
with cognition and memory. Ketamine is a drug that
can block the glutamate receptors on postsynaptic cells.
In this case, ketamine is acting as
A. an inhibitory ligand on the presynaptic cell.
B. an inhibitory ligand on the postsynaptic cell.
C. an excitatory ligand on the presynaptic cell.
D. an excitatory ligand on the postsynaptic cell.
AP Biology
Forsyth
Name
Date
SHORT Free Response Questions
Each answer should be no longer than 3-4 sentences.
33. Bacteria were cultured in a system that allowed for the continual addition of fresh nutrients and the removal of
waste products. Bacteriophage (virus) were added at the time shown and the following population changes were
observed.
Describe and explain the observed results.
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Forsyth
34. Communication occurs among the cells of a multicellular organism. Included in this is communication between one
neuron and another. Describe how a neuron communicates with another neuron and what chemical reaction this causes
in the neuron.
An inhibitory drug that impacts the neurons is taken by a person. Predict what impact this would have on the receiving
cell of this interaction, including what happens chemically.