IGCSE Biology Reproduction topical questions

Complete the sentences about reproduction.

1. (a)Asexual reproduction produces offspring that are genetically ........................ from ........................ parent(s).[2]
2. (b)In sexual reproduction, the nuclei of two ........................ fuse to form a ........................ .[2]

Name the flower part described.

1. (a)Produces pollen.[1]
2. (b)Sticky surface that receives pollen.[1]
3. (c)Contains the ovules.[1]
4. (d)Brightly coloured to attract insects.[1]

State the function of each part of the human reproductive system.

1. (a)Ovaries[1]
2. (b)Testes[1]
3. (c)Oviduct[1]
4. (d)Uterus[1]

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a pathogen that causes a sexually transmitted infection.

1. (a)State the late-stage condition that an HIV infection may develop into.[1]
2. (b)State two ways HIV can be transmitted from one person to another.[2]
3. (c)State two methods that control the spread of STIs.[2]

Compare insect-pollinated and wind-pollinated flowers.

1. (a)State three structural differences between the two flower types.[3]
2. (b)Distinguish between their pollen grains.[2]

A student sets up four jars of cress seeds to investigate germination.

1. (a)State the three environmental conditions a seed needs to germinate.[3]
2. (b)Describe a control setup that shows water is needed, and state the expected result.[2]

Describe the roles of the placenta, umbilical cord and amniotic fluid in the development of a fetus.

1. (a)State the function of the placenta.[2]
2. (b)State the function of the umbilical cord.[1]
3. (c)State the function of the amniotic fluid.[1]
4. (d)Name one substance that passes from mother to fetus across the placenta.[1]

A strawberry plant sends out runners that root and form new plants identical to the parent. A nearby blackberry is pollinated by a bee from another blackberry bush. (Supplement)

1. (a)State two advantages of the strawberry’s method of reproduction.[2]
2. (b)State one disadvantage of the strawberry’s method for the population.[1]
3. (c)State one advantage and one disadvantage of the blackberry’s method of reproduction.[2]

A farmer grows a crop of wheat in which the flowers pollinate themselves. A neighbouring orchard grows apples pollinated by insects from many different trees. (Supplement)

1. (a)Name the type of pollination in the wheat and in the apple trees.[2]
2. (b)Explain the potential effect of wheat’s pollination method on the variation of the population over many generations.[2]
3. (c)Describe what happens after a compatible pollen grain lands on the apple stigma, up to fertilisation.[2]

A sperm cell and an egg cell fuse and the resulting cell begins to divide.

1. (a)State the term describing the number of chromosomes in a gamete nucleus. (Supplement)[1]
2. (b)State the term describing the chromosome number of the cell formed at fertilisation. (Supplement)[1]
3. (c)Describe what the fertilised cell becomes during early development.[2]
4. (d)Name the organ in which early development takes place.[1]

Explain the adaptive features of sperm and egg cells, and how they compare. (Extended)

1. (a)Explain two adaptive features of a sperm cell.[4]
2. (b)Explain one adaptive feature of an egg cell.[2]
3. (c)State one way the gametes differ in numbers produced.[1]

The menstrual cycle is controlled by hormones. (Extended)

1. (a)Describe what happens in the ovaries and in the uterus lining during a cycle in which fertilisation does not occur.[4]
2. (b)Name the hormones controlling the cycle and state one role of each.[3]

During pregnancy, the fetus develops connected to its mother by the placenta and umbilical cord. (Supplement)

1. (a)Describe two features of the placenta that make it efficient for exchange.[2]
2. (b)State why the mother’s blood and the fetus’s blood do not mix.[1]
3. (c)Name one harmful substance that can pass across the placenta.[1]
4. (d)Explain why the placenta is sometimes described as the fetus’s lungs, kidneys and gut combined.[2]

The graph data below show the relative blood levels of four hormones over a 28-day menstrual cycle. (Supplement)

1. (a)Identify which hormone peaks on day 14 and state the event this triggers.[2]
2. (b)Name the hormone that dominates days 15–26, state where it is produced, and state its role.[3]
3. (c)State what happens to the uterus lining by day 28.[1]
4. (d)State which hormone rises fastest between days 7 and 13.[1]