9

Q1. Which one of the following is an indigenous breed of chickens?

• Plymouth Rock
• White Leghorn
• Aseel
• Rhode Island Red

Solution

Aseel is a naturally occurring breed of chicken because it provides a high yield of flavoured meat and has high immunity against common diseases.

Q2. Pathogen-free plants are obtained from

• Seeds
• Shoot meristem culture
• Root culture
• Embryo culture

Solution

Meristems are virus-free, and they are cultured on a suitable medium for shoot apical meristems to obtain virus-free plants.

Q3. The process of bringing wild species of plants under cultivation to suit human needs is called

• Domestication
• Selection
• Cultivation
• Hybridisation

Solution

To adapt (an animal or plant) to life in intimate association with and to the advantage of humans is called domestication. 

Q4. MOET is a method of

• Fish cultivation
• Cloning in sheep
• Hybridisation in cattle
• Birth control in humans

Solution

MOET stands for Multiple Ovulation Embryo Transfer Technique which is a process of hybridisation to overcome the low success rate of artificial or natural cross-breeding experiments.

Q5. Norman Borlaug, known as 'Father of the Green Revolution', had developed a new cultivated variety of

• Paddy
• Rice
• Wheat
• Sugarcane

Solution

Norman Borlaug along with M. S. Swaminathan, who introduced the Green Revolution in India, developed a new cultivated variety of wheat.

Q6. In cattle, when a cow of good breed is stimulated to produce a large number of eggs, it is called

• Induction
• Superovulation
• In vitro fertilisation
• Artificial insemination

Solution

In superovulation, a cow of good breed is stimulated to produce a large number of eggs by injecting gonadotropic hormones such as FSH and LH. A healthy female cow can produce up to 6 to 8 eggs per cycle instead of one egg per cycle.

Q7. Which of the following is not used for surface sterilisation of an explant, which is used for plant tissue culture?

• Sodium hypochlorite
• Clorox water
• Methiolate
• UV radiation

Solution

An explant which is used for plant tissue culture is surface sterilised by chemicals such as Clorox water, sodium hypochlorite, calcium hypochlorite or methiolate. UV radiation cannot be used for surface sterilisation as it can induce mutations in the explant.

Q8. Triticum aestivum, the common bread wheat, is

• Triploid with 21 chromosomes
• Tetraploid with 28 chromosomes
• Hexaploid with 42 chromosomes
• Diploid with 14 chromosomes

Solution

Triticum aestivum is the major breed of wheat containing six homologous sets of chromosomes and 42 chromosomes in total.

Q9. Germplasm includes

• Cultivated improved varieties
• Varieties which are no more in cultivation
• Wild and obsolete plants
• All of the above

Solution

A germplasm is a collection of genetic resources for an organism. It includes cultivated improved varieties, wild and obsolete plants and those varieties which are no more in cultivation.

Q10. A collection of all the alleles of all the genes of a crop plant is called

• Germplasm collection
• Protoplasm collection
• Herbarium
• Somaclonal collection

Solution

Germplasm refers to the hereditary material transmitted to the offspring through the germ cells. It is the total content of genes. It serves as the raw material for the breeder to develop different crops.

Q11. The species of Saccharum originally grown in India was

• S. officinarum
• S. barberi
• S. boulardii
• S. munja

Solution

Saccharum barberi and Saccharum officinarum were crossed to obtain sugarcane varieties having desirable qualities. Saccharum barberi was grown in north India but had poor sugar content and yield.

Q12. The most likely reason for the development of resistance against pesticides in insect-damaged crop is

• Random mutations
• Genetic recombination
• Directed mutations
• Acquired heritable changes

Solution

Due to random mutations, crops infected by insects show resistance to pesticides.

Q13. What made Dr M. S. Swaminathan famous?

• Being a horticulturist
• Being a geneticist
• Being a plant breeder
• All of the above

Solution

Monkombu Sambasivan Swaminathan started the Green Revolution in India along with Norman Borlaug. The revolution mainly depended on plant breeding techniques for high-yielding and disease-resistant varieties in wheat, rice and maize. 

Q14. To obtain disease-free plants through tissue culture techniques, the best method is

• Embryo rescue
• Anther culture
• Protoplast culture
• Meristem culture

Solution

Meristems are virus-free, and they are cultured on a suitable medium of shoot apical meristems to obtain virus-free plants.

Q15. More than 70% of the livestock population is in

• Denmark
• India
• China
• India and China

Solution

Livestock are farm animals (such as cows, horses and pigs) which are kept, raised and used by people. India and China are estimated to have more than 70% of livestock.

Q16. At cryopreservation of germplasm, biological activity

• Essentially ceases
• Cell division stops
• No genetic change occurs
• All of the above

Solution

Cryopreservation refers to the storage of cells and tissues (germplasm) at a temperature of −196 degree centigrade of liquid nitrogen. Biological activity stops during cryopreservation, resulting in stopping of cell division and no genetic change.

Q17. Most cultivated plants are

• Autopolyploids
• Allopolyploids
• Aneuploids
• Haploids

Solution

An organism which has more than two sets of chromosomes per cell is called a polyploid, and this condition is known as polyploidy. Allopolyploids are the common type in plant breeding. They are developed through hybridisation between two species followed by doubling of chromosomes.

Q18. Which one of the following is an American poultry breed?

• Australorp
• Rhode Island Red
• Minorca
• Aseel

Solution

Rhode Island Red is a breed of chicken which was developed in Rhode Island in the United States. The Australorp is a chicken breed of Australian origin. The Minorca is a breed of chicken which originated in Spain. Aseel is a breed of chicken which originated from Sindh province in Pakistan.

Q19. Which of the following is edible by humans as well as relished by livestock?

• Seeds
• Pods
• Leaves and tuberous roots
• All of the above

Solution

Seeds, pods and tuberous roots are the key constituents of feeds for cattle which are also edible and consumed by human beings.

Q20. Haploid plantlets can be produced by

• Pollen culture
• Cotyledon culture
• Embryo culture
• Meristem culture

Solution

Haploid plants can be produced from both male and female gametes. The anther produces pollens. When the anther is cultured on a suitable medium, it produces haploid plants and is called anther or pollen culture.

Q21. The term 'totipotency' refers to the capacity of a

• Cell to generate a whole plant
• Bud to generate a whole plant
• Seed to germinate
• Cell to enlarge in size

Solution

When we take any part of a plant to develop a new embryoid, it has the capacity to generate a whole plant which is called cellular totipotency.

Q22. Somatic hybridisation can be done by

• Protoplast fusion
• Haploid anther
• Cell culture
• Pollen culture

Solution

When a hybrid is produced by the fusion of somatic cells of two species, it is known as a somatic hybrid, and the process of producing somatic hybrids is called somatic hybridisation. This is achieved by protoplast fusion which involves the fusion of protoplasts in a polyethylene glycol (PEG) or sodium nitrate solution.

Q23. The main sugar present in honey is

• Maltose
• Laevulose
• Dextrose
• Ribose

Solution

Honey is produced by worker bees. It is formed of laevulose (42%), dextrose (23%), maltose (10%), enzymes and pigments (25%), minerals, vitamins and water (19%).

Q24. The biggest constraint of plant breeding is

• Availability of the desirable gene in the crop and its wild relatives
• Infrastructure
• Trained manpower
• Transfer of genes from unrelated sources

Solution

There cannot be any transfer of genes from unrelated sources; this is the biggest limitation in plant breeding.

Q25. Single cell protein refers to

• A specific protein extracted from a pure culture of a single type of cells
• Sources of mixed proteins extracted from pure or mixed culture of organisms or cells
• Proteins extracted from a single cell
• A specific protein extracted from a single cell

Solution

The cells from microorganisms such as bacteria and yeasts are extracted from pure or mixed culture, and they are sources of mixed proteins.

Q26. Haploid plants are preferred over diploids for mutation studies, because in haploids

• Recessive mutations express immediately.
• Induction of mutation is easy.
• Culturing of plants is easy.
• Dominant mutations are expressed easily.

Solution

Haploid plants are preferred over diploids for mutation studies, because in haploids, even recessive mutations express immediately as other dominant alleles are not present to mask the effect.

Q27. Cattle feed should contain

• Roughage
• Concentrate
• Both of these
• None of these

Solution

Cattle feed constitutes two major components such as roughage and concentrate. Roughage contains large amount of fibres which include hay and fodder that are much needed for cattle. Concentrate is also an important feed for cattle which is a mixture of cereals such as maize, oat and jowar that are moistened in water. These are rich in proteins and other nutrients.

Q28. Rearing and breeding of fish in ponds, lakes and artificial reservoirs is called

• Aquaculture
• Fishing
• Pisciculture
• Apiculture

Solution

Pisciculture involves the scientific rearing and breeding of fish, shellfish and other aquatic animals by man in ponds and tanks.

Q29. Hybrid vigour is due to

• Homozygosity
• Linkage
• Emasculation
• Heterozygosity

Solution

Increased heterozygosity is the underlying factor which causes hybrid vigour. The hybrid is superior to both the parents.

Q30. Mule is an example of

• Inbreeding
• Out-breeding
• Cross-breeding
• Interspecific hybridisation

Solution

Breeding which involves the interbreeding of male and female animals of different species is called interspecific hybridisation.   Mules are interspecific hybrids produced by a cross between male donkey and female horse.

Q31. The drug used for deworming poultry birds is

• Antihistamine
• Antiviral
• Antihelminthic
• Antibiotic

Solution

Antihelminthic drugs are medicines which rid the body of parasitic worms in the affected poultry. 

Q32. Why is vivipary an undesirable character for annual crops?

• It reduces plant vigour.
• Seeds cannot be stored under normal conditions for the next season.
• Seeds exhibit long dormancy.
• It adversely affects the fertility of the plant.

Solution

Seeds of viviparous plants develop on the plant itself. Hence, the seeds cannot be stored for a long time.

Q33. Spirulina is a rich source of

• Protein
• Vitamins
• Minerals
• All of the above

Solution

Spirulina is a blue-green alga which is the primary source protein for animal and human nutrition. Spirulina is called single cell protein (SCP).

Q34. Which of the following terms is used to describe the component isolated from a plant for in vitro culturing in the specific medium?

• Callus
• Embryoid
• Synthetic seeds
• Explant

Solution

The part of the plant which is taken out and grown in a test tube under sterile conditions in a special nutrient media is called an explant.

Q35. In an autoclave, materials are sterilised by heating at

• 180°C for 15-20 minutes
• 120°C for 15-20 minutes
• 120°C for 30-60 minutes
• 180°C for 30-60 minutes

Solution

In an autoclave, materials are sterilised by heating at 120°C for 15-20 minutes.

Q36. 2,4-D is a

• Auxin
• Cytokine
• Gibberellin
• None of the above

Solution

2,4-D is an auxin which is used to induce shoot growth.

Q37. Which chemical is used for induction of polyploidy?

• Cytokinin
• Nitrous acid
• Colchicine
• IAA

Solution

An organism having more than two sets of chromosomes is polyploid. It can be artificially induced by application of colchicine.

Q38. Which of the following is a mismatch? 

• Pila globosa - Pearl
• Apis indica - Honey
• Kenia lacca - Lac
• Bombyx mori - Silk

Solution

Pearl is obtained from Pinctada vulgaris (pearl oyster).

Q39. Which of the following is most commonly used for creation of genetic variation?

• Polyploidy
• Hybridisation
• Mutation
• Genetic engineering

Solution

Without mutation, genetic variation will not occur and will be followed by incomplete evolutionary change.

Q40. Somaclonal variation appears in plants

• Growing in polluted soil or water
• Exposed to gamma rays
• Raised in tissue culture
• Transformed by recombinant DNA technology