Cells and tissues practice questions
Fifteen questions on organelles, membrane transport, cell division and the four tissue types. Pick an answer to see the explanation.
Written by the Quizard team. Last updated
The cells and tissues unit comes early in most A&P courses, and everything after it builds on it: transport explains the kidney, tissue types explain every organ. Expect questions that ask you to name a structure from its function, or to predict what happens when a cell is put in a different solution.
| Tissue | Main job | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Epithelial | Covers surfaces, lines cavities, forms glands | Skin surface, lining of blood vessels |
| Connective | Supports, binds and protects | Bone, cartilage, blood, fat, tendons |
| Muscle | Contracts to move | Skeletal, cardiac and smooth muscle |
| Nervous | Carries signals | Neurons and glial cells |
Questions
0 of 15 answered
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1. Which organelle makes most of a cell’s ATP?
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Answer: Mitochondrion. Aerobic respiration, and with it most ATP production, takes place in the mitochondria.
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2. Where are proteins for export modified and packaged?
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Answer: Golgi apparatus. Proteins made on the rough ER travel to the Golgi apparatus, which modifies, sorts and packages them into vesicles.
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3. Which organelle holds digestive enzymes that break down worn-out cell parts?
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Answer: Lysosome. Lysosomes contain hydrolytic enzymes that digest worn-out organelles and material taken in by the cell.
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4. What is the plasma membrane mainly made of?
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Answer: A phospholipid bilayer with proteins. The fluid mosaic model describes a phospholipid bilayer with embedded proteins, cholesterol and carbohydrates.
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5. What is the movement of water across a selectively permeable membrane called?
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Answer: Osmosis. Osmosis is the diffusion of water towards the side with the higher solute concentration.
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6. What does the sodium-potassium pump do in each cycle?
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Answer: Moves three sodium ions out and two potassium ions in. Using one ATP, the pump moves three Na⁺ out and two K⁺ in, maintaining the gradients nerve and muscle cells rely on.
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7. What happens to a red blood cell placed in a hypotonic solution?
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Answer: It swells and may burst. Water moves into the cell, where the solute concentration is higher, so it swells and can lyse.
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8. In which phase of mitosis do sister chromatids separate?
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Answer: Anaphase. In anaphase the centromeres split and the chromatids are pulled to opposite poles.
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9. Which tissue lines the inside of blood vessels?
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Answer: Simple squamous epithelium (endothelium). A single layer of flat cells allows easy exchange across capillary walls.
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10. Which epithelium forms the outer layer of the skin?
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Answer: Keratinized stratified squamous. Many layers of flattened cells, filled with keratin at the surface, resist abrasion and water loss.
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11. Where is transitional epithelium found?
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Answer: Urinary bladder. Transitional epithelium stretches as the bladder fills and returns to shape as it empties.
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12. What are tendons mainly made of?
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Answer: Dense regular connective tissue. Tightly packed parallel collagen fibers give tendons great strength in one direction.
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13. Which cartilage covers the ends of long bones at joints?
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Answer: Hyaline cartilage. Smooth hyaline (articular) cartilage reduces friction in synovial joints.
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14. Which cells form myelin in the central nervous system?
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Answer: Oligodendrocytes. Oligodendrocytes myelinate CNS axons; Schwann cells do the same job in the peripheral nervous system.
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15. Which type of muscle has intercalated discs?
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Answer: Cardiac muscle. Intercalated discs link cardiac cells mechanically and electrically, so the heart contracts as a unit.
For exam study only, not clinical guidance. Doses, reference ranges and protocols vary, so follow your course, your local policy and current references. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.
Further reading
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