Prior Unit Exam Multiple-Choice Questions
Note: Due to different versions of the exams, some multiple-choice questions may be slightly different than
what you recall from your period’s test. Typically, either the question or the choices were changed to alter the
test, but essentially the same topic was addressed. Please REFRAIN from printing this off to save paper!
Medical Terminology
1. ___________________ are also known as RED blood cells.
a. erythrocytes
b. granulocytes
c. leukocytes
d. thrombocytes
2. __________________ is a FAST or racing HEART rate.
a. bradycardia
b. fibrillation
c. palpitation
d. tachycardia
3. The _________________ is a SPIRAL shaped passage that leads from the oval window of the inner ear.
a. cochlea
b. pinna
c. tempanic membrane
d. semicircular canal
4. Malignant melanoma is commonly known as skin cancer. What does the root melan/o mean?
a. cancer
b. dark
c. black
d. fatal
5. A/an _________________ is used to EXAMINE the interior of the EYE.
a. opthalmoscope
b. otoscope
c. speculum
d. sphygmomanometer
6. HEPATitis is an inflammation of the __________ caused by a virus or by damage from toxic substances.
a. stomach
b. spleen
c. bladder
d. liver
7. The elbow is ____________ to the wrist.
a. distal
b. proximal
c. lateral
d. superior
e. caudal
8. The __________________ end of the femur (upper leg bone) forms part of the knee.
a. distal
b. proximal
c. lateral
d. superior
e. caudal
9. The brain and spinal cord are protected by the _________________ cavity.
a. anterior
b. dorsal
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
c. thoracic
d. ventral
An adenectomy is ___________________ of a gland.
a. a benign tumor
b. a malignant tumor
c. an inflammation
d. the surgical removal
The STUDY OF the structure, composition and function of TISSUES is called ___________________.
a. cytology
b. histology
c. pathology
d. oncology
The suffix __________________ means "to see" or "a visual examination".
a. -ectomy
b. -centesis
c. -graphy
d. -scopy
The suffix __________________ means "pain".
a. -algia
b. -pn
c. -itis
d. A and B
e. A and C
The patient received _________________ care BEFORE the BIRTH of her baby.
a. perinatal
b. postnatal
c. prenatal
d. none of the above
The root sphincter/o means ____________. Examples of sphincter muscles include orbicularis oculi and
orbicularis oris.
a. round
b. rotating
c. tight band
d. straight
___________________ means abnormally INCREASED MOTOR function or activity.
a. hyperkenesia
b. hyperkinesia
c. hypokenesia
The INNER layer of the uterus is called the ___________________.
a. corpus leutium
b. endometrium
c. myometrium
d. perimetrium
The head is _________________ the shoulders.
a. inferior to
b. superior to
c. above
d. caudal to
e. distal to
Making a ________________ is the process of determining the cause of a disease.
a. diagnoses
b. diagnosis
c. diganosis
20. A singular word ending in 'a' is turned plural by
a. adding an es
b. dropping the a and adding ix
c. adding an s
d. adding an e
21. What is the singular spelling of phalanges?
a. phalange
b. phalang
c. phalanx
d. phalanga
22. tx is shorthand for
a. Tension
b. Temperature
c. Together
d. Treatment
23. bid means
a. one time daily
b. twice daily
c. both daily
d. by mouth
24. The P in HOPS stands for
a. palpitation
b. plan
c. palpation
d. population
25. The sternocleidomastoid muscle is named what it is because
a. the muscle helps hold the head in an upright position
b. its name includes the origin and insertion sites of the muscle
c. it is located near the neck
d. All of the above are reasons
26. Which of the following makes a "kuh" sound?
a. C
b. Ch
c. Qu
d. A and B only
e. all of the above
27. The thickest layer of the HEART is the MUSCULAR layer known as the
a. pericardium
b. epicardium
c. myocardium
d. endocardium
28. The medical term for an x-ray is
a. radiogram
b. radiography
c. radiograph
d. radiology
29. Dysmenorrhea means
a. dysfunctional menses
b. difficult or painful menstruation
c. difficult or painful menopause
d. different phases of menstruation
30. Myopathy means
a. pathologies of the myelin sheath
31.
32.
33.
34.
b. pathologies of the bone marrow
c. pathologies of the muscle
d. pathologies of the meninges
Cystalgia means
a. pain in the bladder
b. a painful cyst
c. a condition involving cysts
d. pain in the cervix
Osteosclerosis means
a. an abnormal a softening of bone
b. an abnormal hardening of bone
c. a lateral curving of the spine
d. a degeneration of the skeleton
Which of the following references 'blood'?
a. hem/o
b. hemat/o
c. -emia
d. A and B only
e. All of the above
Suffixes tend to indicate
a. a procedure
b. a disorder
c. number (as in quantity)
d. A and B
e. All of the above
Fundamentals of A&P
1. Which of the following is an example of a synthesis reaction?
a. AB yields A + B
b. A + B yields AB
c. AB + CD yields AD + CB
d. AB + CD yields AC + BD
e. ABCDE + H2O yields ABCH + DEHO
2. In chemical reactions, ______________ lower the activation energy required to initiate the reaction and/or can
speed up the reaction.
a. reactants
b. products
c. catalysts
d. substrates
e. metabolites
3. Which of the following is NOT an organic compound?
a. Glucose
b. Lipids
c. Starch
d. Proteins
e. Water
4. Which body system is responsible for the SECRETION OF HORMONES from numerous glands, which ultimately
assist in the maintenance of homeostasis through extrinsic regulation of other body systems?
a. Nervous System
b. Endocrine System
c. Lymphatic System
d. Circulatory System
e. Integumentary System
5. What is/are responsible for holding organelles in place and helping chromosomes move during mitosis?
a. Cell Membrane
b. Cytoplasm
c. Lysosomes
d. Cytoskeleton
e. Rough Endoplasmic Reticulum
6. This organelle's functions include modifying, sorting and packaging macromolecules (CHO, lipids and proteins)
for cell secretion or use within the cell and creating lysosomes.
a. Cytosol
b. Ribosomes
c. Smooth endoplasmic reticulum
d. Golgi apparatus
e. Rough endoplasmic reticulum
7. By means of cellular respiration, the human body converts glucose into _________________ to use as energy.
a. Carbon dioxide
b. ATP
c. Water
d. Glycogen
e. None of the Above
8. The movement of water, but not solutes, would be an example of what type of PASSIVE transport mechanism?
a. Filtration
b. Osmosis
c. Facilitated diffusion
d. Simple diffusion
e. Ion pumps
9. Which of the following is NOT an example of a lipid?
a. cholesterol
b. phospholipids
c. steroids
d. glycogen
e. prostaglandins
10. Which body system would the liver belong to?
a. Circulatory System
b. Urinary System
c. Digestive System
d. Endocrine System
e. Reproductive System
11. During protein synthesis, TRANSCRIPTION occurs
a. in the nucleus of a cell
b. by a ribosome reading genetic coding
c. within the cytoplasm
d. in the rough ER
e. in the smooth ER
12. What type of muscle tissue would be found in the walls of hallow structures like the bladder, blood vessels and
the stomach?
a. Smooth
b. Cardiac
c. Skeletal
d. There is no muscle tissue in the walls of these structures
13. Which of the following transport mechanisms is/are NOT an example(s) of ACTIVE transport?
a. Exocytosis
b. Endocytosis
c. Filtration
d. Both A and B
e. All of the above ARE active transport mechanisms
14. ___________ are neutral (pH 7), inorganic compounds.
a. Acids
b. Enzymes
c. Bases
d. Salts
e. Amino acids
15. In regard to membrane potentials, what is the term used for a membrane that has a positive net charge on both
the inside and outside of the cell?
a. Hyperpolarized
b. Resting Membrane
c. Polarized
d. Depolarized
e. Repolarized
Integumentary and Skeletal Systems
1. The patella is what type of bone(s)?
Check all that apply.
a. Long Bones
b. Short Bones
c. Flat Bones
d. Irregular Bones
e. Sutural Bones
f. Sesamoid Bones
2. Which of the following is/are characteristic(s) of vellus hairs?
a. Greater in number on the body
b. Non-Pigmented
c. Fine; smaller in diameter
d. A and C only
e. B and C only
f. All of the above are characteristics of vellus hairs
3. Which of the following is/are synovial joint(s)?
Check all that apply.
a. Knee
b. Symphysis pubis
c. Elbow
d. Sutures of the skull
e. Shoulder
4. What type of joint allows for many different actions/motions and has a distinct structural design after which it is
named?
a. Hinge joints
b. Pivot joints
c. Ball and socket joints
d. Saddle joints
e. None of the above
5. This structure is the outer most layer of a hair.
a. Medulla
b. Hair papilla
c. Cortex
d. Cuticle
e. Arrector pilli
6. Which of the following cells are mature bone cells?
a.
b.
c.
d.
Osteoprogenitors
Osteocytes
Osteoblasts
Osteoclasts
Muscular System
1. Which of the following energy sources constitutes the energy typically stored in the muscle at rest and is quickly
spent (within 15-17 seconds) at the initiation of muscle activity?
a. Anaerobic Glycolysis
b. Lactic Acid System
c. ATP-PC Reserves
d. Aerobic Metabolism
e. All of the energy sources require a conversion of glucose to ATP and, therefore, the ATP they produce is
not readily available for the initiation muscle activity
2. Which energy system(s) can yield up to 36 ATP per glucose and H2O & CO2 as byproducts?
a. Electron Transport Chain
b. Aerobic Metabolism
c. Citric Acid Cycle
d. A and B only
e. All of the Above
3. A muscle contraction in which the muscle as a whole LENGTHENS during its contraction.
a. Isotonic
b. Isometric
c. Concentric
d. Eccentric
e. Tetanus
4. Which muscle fiber type would be best suited for ENDURANCE (low intensity, long duration) type activity?
a. Slow-Twitch/Type I Fibers
b. Intermediate/Type IIa Fibers
c. Fast-Twitch/Type IIb Fibers
d. All muscle fiber types are suited for endurance type activity
5. This type of muscle tissue is found in hollow structures such as blood vessels.
a. Skeletal muscle tissue
b. Cardiac muscle tissue
c. Smooth muscle tissue
d. Aerobic muscle tissue
6. This cytoskeleton protein anchors THICK filaments in place within a myofibril's sarcomeres.
a. Z-disc
b. M-line
c. H-band
d. Troponin
e. Thick filaments are not anchored by any particular structure within a sarcomere
7. This cytoskeleton protein anchors THIN filaments in place within a myofibril's sarcomeres.
a. Z-disc
b. M-line
c. H-band
d. Titin
e. Thin filaments are not anchored by any particular structure within a sarcomere
8. The space between one Z-disc and another Z-disc is referred to as
a. the A-band
b. the I-band
c. a sarcomere
d. the H-zone
e. the M-line
9. This tissue surrounds individual muscle FASCICLES.
a. Epimysium
b. Endomysium
c. Periosteum
d. Perimysium
e. Sarcolemma
Nervous and Endocrine Systems
1. The reversal of the “fight or flight” response is initiated by what nervous system?
a. Central Nervous System
b. Somatic Nervous System
c. Autonomic Nervous System
d. Parasympathetic Nervous System
e. Sympathetic Nervous System
2. The most abundant type of neuron is which of the following?
a. Bipolar neurons
b. Multipolar neurons
c. Unipolar neurons
d. Anaxonic neurons
3. This type of neuroglia performs phagocytosis.
a. Astrocyte
b. Ependymal Cells
c. Oligodendrocytes
d. Schwann Cells
e. Microglia
4. Na+ and K+ move in AND out of a neuron by which of the following mechanisms?
a. Concentration Gradients
b. Electrical Gradients
c. Active Transport
d. A and B only
e. All of the above
5. Taste buds are an example of what kind of receptor?
a. Mechanoreceptors
b. Thermoreceptors
c. Chemoreceptors
d. Photoreceptors
e. None of the above
6. This lobe of the brain is responsible for vision.
a. Parietal Lobe
b. Temporal Lobe
c. Frontal Lobe
d. Occipital Lobe
7. How many spinal nerves are there in the THORACIC spine?
a. 5
b. 7
c. 8
d. 12
8. Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of WHITE matter?
a. Ascending and descending tracts
b. Sends efferent messages to the brain
c. Consists of mostly neurons' axons
d. All of the above are characteristics of white matter
9. Which of the following is NOT true about myelinated neurons?
a. Their AP propagation is faster than that of unmyelinated neurons
b. Their AP propagation is slower than that of unmyelinated neurons
c. Myelinated neurons use continuous propagation
d. A and C
e. B and C
10. The voltage at which an action potential will be generated.
a. Resting potential (-70mV)
b. K+ equilibrium potential (-90mV)
c. Na+ equilibrium potential (+66mV)
d. Threshold (-60mV)
11. This endocrine gland is responsible for secreting the hormone that regulates the development of immune
system cells.
a. Thyroid
b. Pituitary Gland
c. Thymus
d. Pineal Gland
e. Thalamus
12. This hormone facilitates the movement of glucose into cells for the sake of energy production in the
mitochondria.
a. Cortisol
b. Insulin
c. Glucagon
d. Aldosterone
e. HGH