A. Sudheendra Hebbar, Sri Ramakrishna Vidyashala, MYSORE 570 020 (ashebbar66@gmail.

com) 1
BIOTECHNOLOGY
(Sample questions)

1. Restriction endonucleases are
(1) Used in genetic engineering for uniting two DNA molecules
(2) Used for in vitro synthesis of DNA
(3) Present in mammalian cells for degeneration of DNA of dead cells
(4) Synthesized by bacteria for their defence

2. Identify the DNA segment which is not a palindromic sequence;
(1) 5 GAATTC 3 (2) 5 CCCGGG 3
3 CTTAAG 5 3 GGGCCC 5
(3) 5 GGATCC 3 (4) 5 GCGGCCGC 3
3 GGTACC 5 3 CGCCGGCG 5

3. During the synthesis of insulin by rDNA technology, screening of transformed cells having
recombined plasmid (pUC 18) that carries proinsulin gene is done by culturing E. coli in a
medium containing _______ before they are transferred to bioreactors.
(1) Ampicillin (2) Tetracycline
(3) Lactose (4) Cyanogen bromide & PEG

4. Which of the following enzymes is used to form a phosphodiester bond in a nick between a 3
end of one DNA chain and 5 end of another ?
(1) DNA ligase (2) Restriction endonuclease
(3) EcoRI (4) DNA polymerase

5. In DNA fingerprinting,
(1) Southern blotting and Gel electrophoresis are used for separation of DNA fragments
(2) Southern blotting is used for transfer of DNA fragments into nitrocellulose membrane
(3) The DNA probe is used for Southern blotting process
(4) Electrophoresis is used for the tagging of probe into DNA

6. Which of the following can be considered as an application of Monoclonal antibody technique ?
(1) Production of recombinant drugs like somatotropin
(2) Production of genes for gene therapy to cure SCID
(3) Target oriented therapy for cancer
(4) Hybridization of DNA on nitrocellulose membrane

7. In a crop improvement programme, haploids are of great importance because they
(1) Can grow better in adverse conditions
(2) Are useful in the study of meiosis
(3) Require less of fertilisers as compared to diploids
(4) Give homozygous lines on diploidisation

8. The enzymes used to obtain protoplasts during somatic hybridization are
(1) Cellulase and protease (2) Cellulase and amylase
(3) Cellulase and pectinase (4) Amylase and pectinase


A. Sudheendra Hebbar, Sri Ramakrishna Vidyashala, MYSORE 570 020 (ashebbar66@gmail. com) 2
9. The unique property of pluripotent stem cells is that
(1) They can develop into any tissue in the body
(2) They help in the production of monoclonal antibodies
(3) They can develop into whole individual
(4) They can be used to treat allergies

10. EcoRI breaks bonds between the
(1) Complementary bases of two strands of DNA
(2) Adjacent nucleotides of both the strands of DNA
(3) Deoxyribose and nitrobase of a nucleotide
(4) Nucleotides of the nucleoid (DNA) of E. coli

11. A part of the endosperm of a flowering plant is used as explant in tissue culture procedure to
get callus. If the diploid number (2n) of the plant is 42, what would be the number of
chromosomes in each cell of callus ?
(1) 21 (2) 42
(3) 63 (4) 84

12. Match the chemicals listed in Column I with the procedure in which they are used that are
given under Column II and choose the correct combination:
COLUMN I COLUMN II
A. Colchicine p. Restriction digestion
B. Polyethylene glycol q. Electroporation
C. Liquid nitrogen r. Hybridoma technology
D. EcoRI s. Preservation of semen for AI
t. Induction of polyploidy
(1) A t, B r, C s, D p (2) A q, B r, C t, D q
(3) A r, B p, C s, D q (4) A t, B s, C q, D r

13. Statement A: A patient suffering from severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) has very few
functional T lymphocytes.
Statement B: A defective gene in SCID patients directs the synthesis of an enzyme called
ADA (adenosine deaminase).
(1) Both the statements are correct
(2) Both the statements are wrong
(3) Statement A is correct & statement B is wrong
(4) Statement B is correct & statement A is wrong

14. Statement A: Viruses which reproduce in a particular strain of a bacterial species may not
reproduce in another strain of the same species.
Statement B: Restriction endonucleases are produced by bacteria and they recognise specific
nucleotide sequences within a dsDNA molecule and cleave the DNA at those
places.
(1) Both the statements are correct & B is the reason for A
(2) Both the statements are correct & B is not the reason for A
(3) Statement A is correct & statement B is wrong
(4) Statement B is correct & statement A is wrong
A. Sudheendra Hebbar, Sri Ramakrishna Vidyashala, MYSORE 570 020 (ashebbar66@gmail. com) 3
15. With reference to DNA profiling technique, some of the steps are given below. Identify the
correct sequence.
A Gel electrophoresis, B Amplification of DNA, C Southern blotting, D Conversion
of ds DNA fragments into ssDNA fragments, E Restriction enzyme digestion of DNA
(1) B E A D C (2) E B D A C
(3) E B A C D (4) B E D C A

16. With reference to insulin synthesis by genetic engineering, some of the steps are given below.
Identify the correct sequence.
A Electroporation, B Treatment with cyanogen bromide, C Screening for E. coli cells
with proinsulin gene, D Sulphonation, E Treatment with carboxypeptidase and trypsin
(1) B E A D C (2) E B D A C
(3) A C B E D (4) C E A D B

17. Identify the correct statement / s with reference to cattle improvement from the following;
(A) Superovulation is induced by injecting gonadotropins
(B) Recipient cows are injected with FSH & LH to bring them to the same estrous period
(C) Sperm sexing is done to separate abnormal sperms from the normal sperms
(D) Semen obtained from a bull is preserved for a long time at OC
(1) C and D only (2) A, B and D only
(3) A, C and D only (4) A only

18. Identify the incorrectly matched pair or pairs
A. Electroporation Separation of DNA fragments according to their net charge & size
B. Restriction sites Palindromic sequences
C. VNTRs RFLP (Restriction fragment length polymorphism)
D. Polyethylene glycol Hybridoma technology
E. Colchicine Protoplast fusion
(1) A, C and D only (2) B and D only
(3) A and E only (4) C and E only

19. Identify the desirable characteristics for a cloning plasmid from the following;
(a) A site at which replication can be initiated
(b) A highly active promoter
(c) Ability to multiply and express outside the host cell in a bioreactor
(d) One or more unique restriction sites
(e) One or more identifiable marker genes
(1) (a), (d) & (e) only (2) (a), (c) & (d) only
(3) (a), (b), (d) & (e) only (4) All (a), (b), (c), (d) & (e)

20. With regard to tissue culture technique, identify the correct statements from the following;
(A) Plants obtained from the procedure are always diploid
(B) The procedure always results in the formation of genetically uniform population of a
species
(C) Callus produced during the procedure consists of differentiated cells
(D) The technique involves the growth and differentiation of cells in artificial medium
(E) Plantlets obtained from tissue culture are directly transplanted to the field
(1) A, B, D and E only (2) C and E only
(3) B and D only (4) B, D and E only

A. Sudheendra Hebbar, Sri Ramakrishna Vidyashala, MYSORE 570 020 (ashebbar66@gmail. com) 4
21. During biosynthesis of insulin by genetic engineering, the genes for A chain and B chain are
incorporated into pUC-18 in the MCS beside lac z gene. It results in the formation of a
fusion protein containing A chain or B- chain attached to
(1) Lactose permease (2) galoctosidase
(3) Galatoside transacetylase (4) Lactase

22. SCID is a disorder caused due to a defect in the gene that codes for the enzyme
(1) Adenosine deaminase (2) ATP synthase
(3) Peptidyl transferase (4) - galactosidase

23. Identify the incorrectly matched pair or pairs ?
(1) Explant Excised plant part used for callus formation
(2) Cytokinins Root initiation in callus
(3) Somatic embryo Embryo produced from a vegetative cell
(4) Anther culture Haploid plants
(5) Callus Undiferentiated mass of cells
(1) 2 only (2) 2 and 4 only
(3) 2 and 3 only (4) 1, 2 and 4 only

24. Pollen culture is employed to get
(1) Haploid plants (2) Diploid plants
(3) Triploid plants (4) Polyploids

25. Estrous synchronisation in a herd of cattle is achieved by injecting
(1) Prostaglandins (2) Luteotropic hormone
(3) FSH (4) LH


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