Cell Communication & Cell Cycle

Which of the following best describes the role of mitosis in the cell cycle?

Distributing replicated chromosomes to daughter nuclei

Cortisol is a hormone produced in response to stress, including starvation, in humans. Which of the following is most likely an immediate effect of a starvation-induced increase in cortisol secretion?

Increased mobilization of fatty acids from fat cells

Which of the following is true of mitosis?

It maintains the same chromosome number in the daughter cells as in the parent cell.

Cell communication is critical for the function of both unicellular and multicellular eukaryotes. Which of the following is likely true of cell signaling?

Similar cell signaling pathways in diverse eukaryotes are evidence of conserved evolutionary processes.

In the figure above, G1 is represented by which numbered part(s) of the cycle?

I or V

A researcher examining a root tip observes a plant cell with condensed sister chromatids, kinetochores with attached microtubules, and individual chromosomes that are aligned at the equatorial plate of the cell. Which of the following best describes what the next process will be in the cell?

Paired chromatids will separate, and the new daughter chromosomes will move toward opposite poles of the cell.

Most cells that have become transformed into cancer cells have which of the following characteristics when compared to normal, healthy cells?

Shorter cell cycle

Metaphase is characterized by _____.

aligning of chromosomes on the equator

Cyclin-dependent kinase (Cdk) is _____.

an enzyme that attaches phosphate groups to other proteins

The normal function of the p53 gene in the cell is...

as a tumor suppressor gene

DNA replication occurs

during the S phase of the cell cycle

What is the final result of mitosis in a human?

genetically identical 2n somatic cells

Scientists isolate cells in various phases of the cell cycle. They find a group of cells that have 1.5 times more DNA than G1 phase cells. The cells of this group are _____.

in the S phase of the cell cycle

If the DNA content of a diploid cell in the G1 phase of the cell cycle is x, then the DNA content of the same cell at metaphase of meiosis I would be

2x

The endocrine system incorporates feedback mechanisms that maintain homeostasis. Which of the following demonstrates negative feedback by the endocrine system?

After a meal, blood glucose levels become elevated, stimulating beta cells of the pancreas to release insulin into the blood. Excess glucose is then converted to glycogen in the liver, reducing blood glucose levels.

The p53 protein regulates a cellular response to DNA damage. Based on the diagram above, which of the following best describes the role of p53 in the response to DNA damage?

Phosphorylation p53 stimulates transcription of p21, and the resulting p21 protein suppresses cell division until the DNA damage is repaired

The illustration above depicts a neuromuscular junction of a patient with an autoimmune disorder. Acetylcholine is a stimulatory neurotransmitter. Which of the following would be the most likely result of the continued presence of the antibody?

A decrease in action potentials in the muscle, causing muscle weakness and fatigue

Cancer can result from a variety of different mutational events. Which of the following is LEAST likely to result in the initiation of a cancerous tumor?

A defect in a cell-cycle checkpoint prevents a cell from entering the S phase.

The figure above shows a model of a ligand precursor being cleaved to produce an active ligand that binds to a specific receptor. Which of the following is most likely to reduce the binding of the active ligand to its receptor?

A mutation in the receptor gene that causes a substitution of a charged amino acid for a nonpolar amino acid in the ligand binding site of the receptor

Antidiuretic hormone (ADH) is important in maintaining homeostasis in mammals. ADH is released from the hypothalamus in response to high tissue osmolarity. In response to ADH, the collecting duct and distal tubule in the kidney become more permeable to water, which increases water reabsorption into the capillaries. The amount of hormone released is controlled by a negative feedback loop. Based on the model presented, which of the following statements expresses the proper relationship between osmolarity, ADH release, and urine production?

As tissue osmolarity rises, more ADH is released, causing less water to be excreted as urine.

Glycogen synthetase kinase 3 beta is a protein kinase that has been implicated in many types of cancer. Depending on the cell type, the gene for glycogen synthetase kinase 3 beta (GSK3β) can act either as an oncogene or as a tumor suppressor. Which of the following best predicts how GSK3β mutations can lead to the development of cancer?

Cells with inactive GSK3β fail to trigger apoptosis.

Air is less dense at very high elevations, so less oxygen is available than in the denser air at sea level. Based on the model in Figure 1, if a person travels from sea level to a high elevation location, which of the following correctly predicts the response to the decreased blood oxygen level?

More erythropoietin will be secreted from the kidneys, increasing production of erythrocytes.

A student claims that the Y chromosome contains the sex-determining region gene, known as the SRY gene, which causes male fetuses to develop testes. Which of the following provides correct information about cell signaling that supports the claim?

The SRY gene produces a protein that binds to specific regions of DNA in certain tissues, which affects the development of these tissues.

A research team began a study of a cultured cell line. Their preliminary observations showed them that the cell line did not exhibit either density-dependent inhibition or anchorage dependence. What could they conclude right away?

The cells show characteristics of tumors.

Cancer cells behave differently than normal body cells. For example, they ignore signals that tell them to stop dividing. Which of the following conditions will most likely cause a normal body cell to become a cancer cell?

The environment contains mutagens that induce mutations that affect cell-cycle regulator proteins.

The compound eyes of arthropods contain photoreceptor cells surrounded by other cells such as cone cells and pigment cells. Scientists studied how interactions between neighboring cells in the developing eyes of larval fruit flies affect the differentiation of R7 precursor cells that normally become the photoreceptors of adult wild-type flies. One of their experiments is illustrated in Figure 1. R7 and R8 cells are both present in a cluster of cells in the developing eye. R8 cells have cell-surface proteins called Boss. R7 precursor cells have cell-surface receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs) called Sev and contain the G protein Ras that is involved in intracellular signaling. RTKs are proteins with an extracellular portion that binds to a ligand and an intracellular portion that transfers phosphate groups from ATP to other proteins. Scientists examined the fate of R7 precursor cells in fly larvae with wild-type (normal) forms of the Boss, Sev, and Ras proteins or in larvae with single mutations in the protein Sev (Sev−) or double mutations in both Sev (Sev−) and Ras (RasD). RasD is a form of Ras that is always active.

The first interaction that must occur between the R7 precursor cell and the R8 cell for the R7 precursor to differentiate to an R7 photoreceptor cell is Ras must become activated and attached to the Sev RTK, which results in signaling to the R7 Photoreceptor.

Which of the following statements accurately used the information presented to support the hypothesis that interruption of M function in a single body cell can result in cancer.

The receptor proteins of body cells will no longer bind to growth-factor proteins

Trypsinogen is split by the enzyme enterokinase to form an activated molecule of the protease trypsin. Which of the following would confirm that the activation of trypsin is an example of how a positive feedback mechanism can amplify a biological process?

The trypsin produced by the reaction is capable of splitting and activating additional trypsinogen molecules.