Prokaryotic Cell Quiz
Questions: 16 · 10 minutes
1. A motile bacterium can no longer swim toward a nutrient source after an appendage is damaged. Which structure was most likely affected?
Flagellum
Plasmid
Nucleoid
Capsule
2. A bacterium loses its external capsule. Which ability is most likely to be reduced?
Adhering to surfaces and resisting drying
Copying its main chromosome
Producing ATP through its plasma membrane
Building proteins from amino acids
3. A chemical prevents a prokaryotic cell from regulating which substances enter and leave. Which structure has most directly been disrupted?
Flagellum
Plasma membrane
Chromosome
Ribosome
4. Why can transcription and translation be closely coupled in prokaryotic cells?
Their ribosomes are located inside the nucleus
Their cell walls convert DNA into proteins
Their proteins are translated directly from DNA without RNA
No nuclear envelope separates the DNA from cytoplasmic ribosomes
5. In a typical prokaryotic cell, where is the main chromosome located?
Inside a membrane-bound nucleus
In the nucleoid region
Within the cell wall
Inside the Golgi apparatus
6. A bacterial cell is moved into a hypotonic environment, causing water to enter. Which structure most directly helps prevent osmotic bursting?
Plasmid
Conjugation pilus
Nucleoid
Cell wall
7. A mutation prevents a bacterium from forming a functional conjugation pilus. Which process is most directly affected?
Transfer of DNA between bacterial cells
Movement powered by flagella
Separation of replicated chromosomes
Translation by ribosomes
8. Which event is a central part of binary fission in prokaryotes?
Replication and segregation of the chromosome before cell division
Breakdown of a nuclear envelope
Fusion of two gametes
Formation of a mitotic spindle from centrioles
9. An antibiotic blocks the formation of peptidoglycan. Which structure is it targeting?
The bacterial nucleoid
The bacterial ribosome
The archaeal chromosome
The bacterial cell wall
10. A bacterial population forms endospores when nutrients become scarce. What is the primary role of these structures?
To exchange DNA during conjugation
To increase swimming speed
To help cells survive unfavorable conditions
To reproduce by releasing many offspring cells
11. Which structure directly assembles amino acids into proteins in a prokaryotic cell?
Nucleoid
Capsule
Ribosome
Cell wall
12. Which description best matches a plasmid?
A protein coat surrounding every prokaryotic chromosome
A small DNA molecule that can replicate separately from the main chromosome
A long appendage that powers swimming
A membrane-bound compartment used for digestion
13. What is the usual size designation of prokaryotic cytosolic ribosomes?
80S
70S
90S
100S
14. Which feature distinguishes many archaeal plasma membranes from bacterial plasma membranes?
Archaeal membranes always contain a membrane-bound nucleus
Bacterial membranes contain DNA, whereas archaeal membranes do not
Archaeal membrane lipids commonly use ether linkages rather than ester linkages
Archaeal membranes are made primarily of peptidoglycan
15. A microscopic cell contains DNA and ribosomes but lacks a membrane-bound nucleus. Which classification is best supported?
It must be a multicellular eukaryote
It is a membrane-bound organelle
It is a virus particle
It is a prokaryotic cell
16. A cell is approximately 2 micrometres long, contains ribosomes, and has no membrane-bound organelles. Which interpretation is most consistent with these observations?
It is too small to contain genetic material
It must be a virus because all cells have membrane-bound organelles
Its size and internal organization are consistent with a prokaryotic cell
It must be a eukaryotic cell undergoing mitosis