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NEET Cell Structure and Function MCQs with answers

409 questions on Cell Structure and Function for NEET 2027, 3 of them from previous NEET papers. Below are 15 to try; tap a question to see its answer and explanation.

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15 sample questions

hardNEET 2022

1. Crossing over occurs at which stage of meiosis:

  1. Leptotene
  2. Zygotene
  3. Pachytene
  4. Diplotene
Show answer and explanation

Answer: (C) Pachytene

Crossing over at Pachytene of Prophase I. Chiasmata visible at Diplotene.

Quick tip: LZPDD: Leptotene, Zygotene, Pachytene (crossing over!), Diplotene, Diakinesis.

NCERT Class 11, Chapter 10, page 180

easyNEET 2022

2. Which organelle is the "powerhouse of the cell"?

  1. Ribosome
  2. Mitochondria
  3. Lysosome
  4. Golgi Apparatus
Show answer and explanation

Answer: (B) Mitochondria

Mitochondria produce ATP via oxidative phosphorylation. Inner membrane = cristae.

Quick tip: Mito=powerhouse. Ribosome=protein factory. Golgi=post office. Lysosome=suicidal bag.

NCERT Class 11, Chapter 8, page 135

mediumNEET 2023

3. Which is NOT a reducing sugar?

  1. Glucose
  2. Fructose
  3. Sucrose
  4. Maltose
Show answer and explanation

Answer: (C) Sucrose

Sucrose: glycosidic bond between anomeric carbons of both → no free reducing group.

Quick tip: Non-reducing: Sucrose, Trehalose. All monosaccharides = reducing. Most disaccharides = reducing EXCEPT sucrose.

NCERT Class 11, Chapter 9, page 155

easy

4. Which of the following components of the bacterial cell envelope determines the shape of the cell and provides a strong structural support to prevent the bacterium from bursting or collapsing?

  1. Glycocalyx
  2. Mesosome
  3. Plasma membrane
  4. Peptidoglycan cell wall
Show answer and explanation

Answer: (D) Peptidoglycan cell wall

According to NCERT, the cell wall determines the shape of the bacterial cell and provides strong structural support to prevent it from bursting or collapsing. The glycocalyx acts primarily as a protective layer or capsule, while the plasma membrane is selectively permeable.

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5. Enzymes from thermophilic organisms that live under extremely high temperatures (e.g. hot vents) are:

  1. Made of lipids
  2. Stable and retain catalytic power even at 80-90 °C
  3. Destroyed above 40 °C
  4. Inactive at all temperatures
Show answer and explanation

Answer: (B) Stable and retain catalytic power even at 80-90 °C

Most enzymes are damaged at high temperatures (above 40 °C). Enzymes isolated from thermophilic organisms are stable and retain catalytic power even at 80-90 °C.

NCERT Class 11

hard

6. Small bristle-like fibres sprouting out of a bacterial cell, which help it attach to rocks or host tissues, are:

  1. Flagella
  2. Pili
  3. Fimbriae
  4. Mesosomes
Show answer and explanation

Answer: (C) Fimbriae

Fimbriae are small bristle-like fibres that help attachment. Pili are elongated tubular structures made of special protein; flagella are for motility.

NCERT Class 11

medium

7. When the substrate concentration is increased, the velocity of an enzymatic reaction rises at first and finally reaches a maximum velocity (Vmax), which is not exceeded because:

  1. The temperature falls
  2. The substrate is destroyed
  3. The enzyme molecules are fewer than the substrate molecules, and after saturation no free enzyme is available
  4. The enzyme becomes a substrate
Show answer and explanation

Answer: (C) The enzyme molecules are fewer than the substrate molecules, and after saturation no free enzyme is available

Once all enzyme molecules are saturated, there are no free enzyme molecules to bind additional substrate.

easy

8. Identify the amino acid that possesses a hydroxy-methyl group as its variable R group.

  1. Serine
  2. Alanine
  3. Glycine
  4. Tyrosine
Show answer and explanation

Answer: (A) Serine

In serine, the R-group is a hydroxy-methyl group (-CH₂OH). In glycine, the R-group is hydrogen (-H), and in alanine, it is a methyl group (-CH₃).

hard

9. Consider the following pairs of subcellular structures and their characteristics: (a) Outer mitochondrial membrane - Forms folds called cristae to expand surface area (b) Perinuclear space - Measures about 10 to 50 nm (c) Kinetochores - Disc-shaped structures present at the centromere (d) Thylakoid lumen - Houses ribosomes and circular double-stranded DNA How many of the above pairs are CORRECTLY matched?

  1. One
  2. Two
  3. Three
  4. Four
Show answer and explanation

Answer: (B) Two

Pairs (b) and (c) are correct. Pair (a) is incorrect because the inner (not outer) mitochondrial membrane forms cristae. Pair (d) is incorrect because ribosomes and circular DNA are located in the stroma of the chloroplast, not inside the thylakoid lumen.

medium

10. Given below are two statements: Statement I: Lipids are not strictly biological macromolecules because their molecular weight does not exceed 800 Da. Statement II: Lipids are found in the acid-insoluble fraction because they form insoluble vesicles/micelles when cell membranes are disrupted. In light of the above statements, choose the correct answer:

  1. Both Statement I and Statement II are correct
  2. Statement I is correct but Statement II is incorrect
  3. Statement I is incorrect but Statement II is correct
  4. Both Statement I and Statement II are incorrect
Show answer and explanation

Answer: (A) Both Statement I and Statement II are correct

Lipids have small molecular weights (<800 Da) and are technically micromolecules. However, upon cell lysis, membrane lipids fragment into vesicles that are acid-insoluble and thus sediment with macromolecules in the retentate.

medium

11. The ribosomes of chloroplasts are:

  1. 70S, smaller than cytoplasmic ribosomes
  2. 80S, same as cytoplasmic ribosomes
  3. 90S, larger than cytoplasmic ribosomes
  4. Absent
Show answer and explanation

Answer: (A) 70S, smaller than cytoplasmic ribosomes

Chloroplast ribosomes are smaller (70S) than the cytoplasmic ribosomes (80S). The chloroplast stroma also contains small, double-stranded circular DNA.

NCERT Class 11

medium

12. Chitin, found in the exoskeleton of arthropods, is a complex polysaccharide built of:

  1. Glucose with alpha linkages only
  2. Amino acids
  3. Amino-sugars and chemically modified sugars such as glucosamine and N-acetyl galactosamine
  4. Fructose only
Show answer and explanation

Answer: (C) Amino-sugars and chemically modified sugars such as glucosamine and N-acetyl galactosamine

Exoskeletons of arthropods contain chitin, a complex polysaccharide whose building blocks are amino-sugars and chemically modified sugars like glucosamine and N-acetyl galactosamine.

NCERT Class 11

medium

13. At the end of meiosis I (telophase I and cytokinesis), the cell group formed is called a:

  1. Tetrad of cells
  2. Dyad of cells
  3. Syncytium
  4. Bivalent
Show answer and explanation

Answer: (B) Dyad of cells

Telophase I and cytokinesis give a dyad of cells; meiosis II then gives a tetrad of cells.

medium

14. Several ribosomes attached to a single mRNA form a:

  1. Nucleoid
  2. Plasmid
  3. Polysome
  4. Mesosome
Show answer and explanation

Answer: (C) Polysome

A chain of ribosomes attached to one mRNA is a polysome (polyribosome). Each ribosome translates the same mRNA into protein.

NCERT Class 11

medium

15. The middle lamella, which holds neighbouring plant cells together, is mainly composed of:

  1. Lignin
  2. Cellulose
  3. Chitin
  4. Calcium pectate
Show answer and explanation

Answer: (D) Calcium pectate

The middle lamella is a layer mainly of calcium pectate; the cell wall and middle lamella may be traversed by plasmodesmata.

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