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MCAT Prep Biology

Subjects : mcat, science
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
  • If you are not ready to take this test, you can study here.
  • Match each statement with the correct term.
  • Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.

This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. A cell produced when a B cell is activated by antigen. Memory cells do not actively fight the current infection - but patrol the body in case of future infection with the same antigen. If the antigen should appear again the future - memory cells are






2. An irritation of a tissue caused by infection or injury. Inflammation is characterized by four cardinal symptoms; redness (rubor) - swelling (tumor) - heat (calor) - and pain (dolor).






3. A cell that produces bone.






4. One of the four basic tissue types in the body (epithelial - connective - muscle - and nervous). Connective tissue is a supportive tissue consisting of a relatively few cells scattered among a great deal of extracellular material (matrix) - and inclu






5. Receptors in the carotid arteries and the aorta that monitor blood pH to help regulate ventilation rate.






6. A gland that secretes its product into a duct - which ultimately carries the product to the surface of the body or into a body cavity. Some examples of exocrine gland and their products are sweat glands (sweat) - gastric glands (acid - mucus - protea






7. The first branches of the trachea. There are two primary bronchi - one for each lung.






8. A long projection on a bacterial surface involved in an attachment - e.g. - the sex pilus attaches F+ and F- bacteria during conjugation.






9. A nucleotide sequence on DNA that contians three elemtns: a coding sequence for one or more enzymes - *a coding sequence for a regulatory protein - and upstream regulatory sequences where the regulatory proteins can bind. An example is the lac operon






10. The stage of human development during which the organs are formed. Organogenesis begins after gastrulation and is completed by the eight week of gestation.






11. A microscopic space between the axon of one neuron and the cell body or dendrites of a secon neruon - or between the axon of a neuron and an organ.






12. A thick muscular tube that connects the epididymis of the testes to the urethra. Muscular contractions of the vas deferns during ejaculation ehp propel the sperm outward. Severing of the vas deferens (vasectomy) results in sterility of the male.






13. A cyoplasmic Ca2+- binding protein. Calmodulin is particularly important in smooth muscle cells - where binding of Ca2+ allows calmodulin to activate myosin light - chian kinase - the first step in smooth muscle cell contraction.






14. A hormone produced from vitamin D that acts in essentially the same manner as parathyroid hormone.






15. Also called falopian tubes - these tubes extend laterally from their side of the uterus and serve as a passageway for the ocyte to travel from the ovary to the uterus. This is also the normal site of fertilization. Severing of the uterine tubes (tuba






16. The movement of air out of the respiratory tract. Expiration can be passive (caused by relaxation of the diaphragm and elastic recoil of the lungs) or active (caused by contraction of the abdominal muscles - which increases intraabdominal pressure an






17. An asexual method of bacterial reproduction that serves only to increase the size of the population; ther is no introduciton of gnetic diversity. THe bacterium simply grows in size until it has doubled its cellular components - then it replicates its






18. The portion of theforebrain that includes the thalamus and hypothalamus.






19. A chemical derived from vitamin A found in the pigment proteins of the rod photoreceptors of the retina. Retinal changes conformation when it absorbs light - triggering a series of reactions that ultimately result in an action potential being sent to






20. The process by which neighboring cells can influence the determination (and subsequent differentiation) of a cell.






21. A type of syanpse in which the cells are connected by gap junctions - allowing ions (and therefore an action potential) to spread easily from cell to cell - usually in smooth and cardiac muscle. - compared to chemical synapse.






22. All the genetic information in an organism; all of an organism's chromosomes.






23. Very small tube or channel - such as is found between lacunae (connecting them together) in compact bone.






24. A dense - hard type of bone constructed from osteons (at the microscopic level). Compact bone forms the diaphysis of the the long bones - and the outer shell of the epiphyses and all other bones.






25. A small - extrachromosomal (outside the genome) - circular DNA molecule found in prokaryotes.






26. One of several different nutrietns that must be consumed in the diet - and generally not synthesized in the body. Vitamins can be hdyrophobic (fat - solube) or hydrophilic (water - soluble).






27. The enzyme that catalyzes the phosphorylation of fructose -6- phosphate to form fructose -1-6- bisphosphate in the third step of glycolysis. This is the main regulatory step of glycolysis. PFK is feedback - inhibited by ATP.






28. Active transport that releies on an established concentration gradient - typically set up by a primary active transporter. Secondary active transport relies on ATP indirectly.






29. A tropic hormone produced by the anterior pituitary gland that targets the gonads. In females LH triggers ovulation and the development of a corpus luteum during the menstrual cycle; in males - LH stimulates the production and release of testosteron.






30. The outer ring of cells of a blastocyst. The trophoblast takes part in the formation of the placenta.






31. The tubes that carry urine from the kindeys to the bladder.






32. The release of a secondary oocyte (along with some granulosa cells) from the ovary at the approximate midpoint of the menstrual cycle (typically around day 14). Ovulation is triggered by a surge in LH.






33. A blood protein essential to blood clotting. The conversion of fibrinogen to its active form (fibrin) is among the final steps in clot formation - and is triggered by thrombin.






34. The pressure measured in the arteries while the ventricles are relaxed (during diastole).






35. A neuron - to - neuron - neuron - to - organ - or muscle to cell - to - muscle cell junction.






36. Small fragments of DNa produced on the lagging strand during DNa replication - joined later by DNA ligase to form a complete strand.






37. A cell surface receptor associated with an intracellular protein that binds and hydrolyzes GTP. When GTP is bound - the protein is active - and can regulate the activity of adenylyl cyclease; this modifies the intracellular levels of second messenger






38. The enzymes that catalyzes the phosphorylation of glucose to form glucose -6- phosphate in the first step of glycolysis. This is one of the ain regulatory steps of this pathway. Hexokinase is feedback - inhibited by glucose -6- P.






39. The 28 days of the menstrual cycle as they apply to events in the ovary. The ovarian cycle has three subphases: the follicular phase - ovulation - and the luteal phase.






40. The outer layer of an organ - e.g. the renal cortex - the ovarian cortex - the adrenal cortex - etc.






41. A type of lipoprotein; the form in which absorbed fats from the intestines are transported to the circulatory system.






42. A sensory receptor that responds to specific chemicals. Some examples are gustatory (taste) receptors - olfactory (smell) receptors - and central chemoreceptors (responds to pH changes in teh cerebrospinal fluid).






43. The set of adult characteristics that develop during puberty under the control of the sex steroids. In males the secondary sex characteristics include enlargement and maturation of the genitalia - growth of facial - body - and pubic hair - increased






44. The final portion of the large intestine.






45. A chemical secreted by a T cell (usually the helper Ts) that stimulates activation and proliferation of other immune system cells.






46. One of two large chambers in the heart. The ventricles receive blood from the atria and pump it out of the lungs of the heart. The right ventricle has thing walls and pumps deoxygenated blood to the lungs through the pulmonary artery. The left ventri






47. The valves in the heart that separate the ventricles from the arteries. The pulmonary semilunar valve separates the right ventricle from the pulmonary artery - and the aortic semilunar valve separates left ventricle from the aorta. These valves close






48. A function in the reproductive system - controlled by the parasympathetic nervous system - that includes erection (via dilation of erectile arteries) and lubrication.






49. A tropic hormone produced by the anterior pituitary gland that targets the gonads. In females - FSH stimulates the ovaries to develop follicles (oogenesis) and secrete estrogen; in males - FSH stimulates spermatogenesis.






50. The maximal volume of air that the lungs can contain. Total lung capacity is the sum of the vital capacity and the residual volume - and is typically about 6000 mL (6L).