Test Bank
to accompany
Life: The Science of Biology, Tenth Edition
Sadava • Hillis • Heller • Berenbaum
Chapter 4: Nucleic Acids and the Origin of Life
TEST FILE QUESTIONS
(By Grant Hurlburt)
Multiple Choice
1. Which of the following statements concerning genetic information in most cells is
true?
a. The entire DNA molecule is copied to RNA during DNA replication.
b. A single DNA nucleotide codes for a single amino acid.
c. The flow of information in a cell is from DNA to RNA to protein.
d. The flow of information in a cell is from protein to RNA to DNA.
e. The flow of information in a cell is from DNA to protein to RNA.
Answer: c
Textbook Reference: 4.1 What Are the Chemical Structures and Functions of Nucleic
Acids?
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
2. A nucleotide contains a pentose sugar, a phosphate group, and a(n)
a. lipid.
b. acid.
c. nitrogen-containing base.
d. amino acid.
e. glycerol.
Answer: c
Textbook Reference: 4.1 What Are the Chemical Structures and Functions of Nucleic
Acids?
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
3. The difference between nucleosides and nucleotides is that
a. only nucleotides have nitrogenous bases.
b. a phosphate group is found in nucleotides but not in nucleosides.
c. nucleotides have the pentose sugar ribose; nucleosides have the pentose sugar
deoxyribose.
d. in nucleosides the monomers are joined by phosphodiester bonds; in nucleotides the
monomers are joined by hydrogen bonds.
e. nucleosides are the monomers of DNA; nucleotides are the monomers of RNA.
Answer: b
© 2014 Sinauer Associates, Inc.
,Textbook Reference: 4.1 What Are the Chemical Structures and Functions of Nucleic
Acids?
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
4. The bases of nucleic acids are purines or pyrimidines. Which of the following
statements contrasting purines and pyrimidines is true?
a. Purines include the bases cytosine and thymine, whereas pyrimidines include the bases
adenine and guanine.
b. Pyrimidines are found in RNA, whereas purines are found in DNA.
c. Purines are double-ring structures, whereas pyrimidines are single-ring structures.
d. Purines have only single bonds in their structure, whereas pyrimidines have both single
and double bonds in their structure.
e. Purines consist of hydrogen, carbon, oxygen, and nitrogen, whereas pyrimidines have
phosphorus, hydrogen, carbon, oxygen, and nitrogen.
Answer: c
Textbook Reference: 4.1 What Are the Chemical Structures and Functions of Nucleic
Acids?
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
5. Ribose and deoxyribose are both found in nucleic acids. The difference between ribose
and deoxyribose is that
a. deoxyribose has one less oxygen atom.
b. ribose is a pentose sugar, whereas deoxyribose is a hexose sugar.
c. deoxyribose is found in DNA, whereas ribose is found in RNA.
d. Both a and b
e. Both a and c
Answer: e
Textbook Reference: 4.1 What Are the Chemical Structures and Functions of Nucleic
Acids?
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
6. What is attached to the 5ʹ-carbon of deoxyribose in DNA?
a. Adenine
b. Phosphate
c. Guanine
d. Thymine
e. Uracil
Answer: b
Textbook Reference: 4.1 What Are the Chemical Structures and Functions of Nucleic
Acids?
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
7. All of the following bases are found in DNA except
a. thymine.
b. adenine.
c. uracil.
© 2014 Sinauer Associates, Inc.
,d. guanine.
e. cytosine.
Answer: c
Textbook Reference: 4.1 What Are the Chemical Structures and Functions of Nucleic
Acids?
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
8. The four nitrogenous bases of RNA are abbreviated as
a. A, G, C, and T.
b. A, G, T, and N.
c. A, G, C, and U.
d. A, G, U, and T.
e. G, C, U, and N.
Answer: c
Textbook Reference: 4.1 What Are the Chemical Structures and Functions of Nucleic
Acids?
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
9. Nucleotides in RNA are connected to one another in the polynucleotide chain by
_______ bonds between _______.
a. hydrogen; a sugar and a phosphate group
b. covalent; two phosphates
c. covalent; two sugars
d. hydrogen; two phosphate groups
e. covalent; a sugar and a phosphate group
Answer: e
Textbook Reference: 4.1 What Are the Chemical Structures and Functions of Nucleic
Acids?
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
10. Nucleic acids and proteins are both polymers made of a set of monomers. Complete
the following analogy: _______ are to nucleotides as side chains are to amino acids.
a. Ribose/deoxyribose sugars
b. Phosphate ions
c. Nitrogenous bases
d. Nucleosides
e. Hydroxyl groups
Answer: c
Textbook Reference: 4.1 What Are the Chemical Structures and Functions of Nucleic
Acids?
Bloom’s Category: 4. Analyzing
11. The “backbone” of a nucleic acid molecule is made of
a. nitrogenous bases.
b. alternating sugar and phosphate groups.
c. purines.
© 2014 Sinauer Associates, Inc.
, d. pyrimidines.
e. nucleosides.
Answer: b
Textbook Reference: 4.1 What Are the Chemical Structures and Functions of Nucleic
Acids?
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
12. DNA differs from RNA in that
a. RNA contains uracil instead of thymine.
b. RNA is single-stranded; DNA is double-stranded.
c. RNA leaves the nucleus, DNA does not.
d. RNA contains ribose; DNA contains deoxyribose.
e. All of the above
Answer: e
Textbook Reference: 4.1 What Are the Chemical Structures and Functions of Nucleic
Acids?
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
13. Which of the following statements about DNA and RNA is false?
a. DNA has thymine, whereas RNA has uracil.
b. DNA usually has two polynucleotide strands, whereas RNA usually has one strand.
c. DNA has deoxyribose sugar, whereas RNA has ribose sugar.
d. DNA is a polymer, whereas RNA is a monomer.
e. In DNA, A pairs with T, whereas in RNA, A pairs with U.
Answer: d
Textbook Reference: 4.1 What Are the Chemical Structures and Functions of Nucleic
Acids?
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
14. In DNA, bonding of A with T and bonding of C with G are examples of
a. complementary base pairing.
b. a dehydration reaction.
c. a reduction reaction.
d. a hydrophobic interaction.
e. a purine–purine interaction.
Answer: a
Textbook Reference: 4.1 What Are the Chemical Structures and Functions of Nucleic
Acids?
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
15. What type of bond connects two complementary nucleotides?
a. Hydrogen
b. Ionic
c. Peptide
d. Phosphodiester
e. Covalent
© 2014 Sinauer Associates, Inc.
to accompany
Life: The Science of Biology, Tenth Edition
Sadava • Hillis • Heller • Berenbaum
Chapter 4: Nucleic Acids and the Origin of Life
TEST FILE QUESTIONS
(By Grant Hurlburt)
Multiple Choice
1. Which of the following statements concerning genetic information in most cells is
true?
a. The entire DNA molecule is copied to RNA during DNA replication.
b. A single DNA nucleotide codes for a single amino acid.
c. The flow of information in a cell is from DNA to RNA to protein.
d. The flow of information in a cell is from protein to RNA to DNA.
e. The flow of information in a cell is from DNA to protein to RNA.
Answer: c
Textbook Reference: 4.1 What Are the Chemical Structures and Functions of Nucleic
Acids?
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
2. A nucleotide contains a pentose sugar, a phosphate group, and a(n)
a. lipid.
b. acid.
c. nitrogen-containing base.
d. amino acid.
e. glycerol.
Answer: c
Textbook Reference: 4.1 What Are the Chemical Structures and Functions of Nucleic
Acids?
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
3. The difference between nucleosides and nucleotides is that
a. only nucleotides have nitrogenous bases.
b. a phosphate group is found in nucleotides but not in nucleosides.
c. nucleotides have the pentose sugar ribose; nucleosides have the pentose sugar
deoxyribose.
d. in nucleosides the monomers are joined by phosphodiester bonds; in nucleotides the
monomers are joined by hydrogen bonds.
e. nucleosides are the monomers of DNA; nucleotides are the monomers of RNA.
Answer: b
© 2014 Sinauer Associates, Inc.
,Textbook Reference: 4.1 What Are the Chemical Structures and Functions of Nucleic
Acids?
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
4. The bases of nucleic acids are purines or pyrimidines. Which of the following
statements contrasting purines and pyrimidines is true?
a. Purines include the bases cytosine and thymine, whereas pyrimidines include the bases
adenine and guanine.
b. Pyrimidines are found in RNA, whereas purines are found in DNA.
c. Purines are double-ring structures, whereas pyrimidines are single-ring structures.
d. Purines have only single bonds in their structure, whereas pyrimidines have both single
and double bonds in their structure.
e. Purines consist of hydrogen, carbon, oxygen, and nitrogen, whereas pyrimidines have
phosphorus, hydrogen, carbon, oxygen, and nitrogen.
Answer: c
Textbook Reference: 4.1 What Are the Chemical Structures and Functions of Nucleic
Acids?
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
5. Ribose and deoxyribose are both found in nucleic acids. The difference between ribose
and deoxyribose is that
a. deoxyribose has one less oxygen atom.
b. ribose is a pentose sugar, whereas deoxyribose is a hexose sugar.
c. deoxyribose is found in DNA, whereas ribose is found in RNA.
d. Both a and b
e. Both a and c
Answer: e
Textbook Reference: 4.1 What Are the Chemical Structures and Functions of Nucleic
Acids?
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
6. What is attached to the 5ʹ-carbon of deoxyribose in DNA?
a. Adenine
b. Phosphate
c. Guanine
d. Thymine
e. Uracil
Answer: b
Textbook Reference: 4.1 What Are the Chemical Structures and Functions of Nucleic
Acids?
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
7. All of the following bases are found in DNA except
a. thymine.
b. adenine.
c. uracil.
© 2014 Sinauer Associates, Inc.
,d. guanine.
e. cytosine.
Answer: c
Textbook Reference: 4.1 What Are the Chemical Structures and Functions of Nucleic
Acids?
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
8. The four nitrogenous bases of RNA are abbreviated as
a. A, G, C, and T.
b. A, G, T, and N.
c. A, G, C, and U.
d. A, G, U, and T.
e. G, C, U, and N.
Answer: c
Textbook Reference: 4.1 What Are the Chemical Structures and Functions of Nucleic
Acids?
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
9. Nucleotides in RNA are connected to one another in the polynucleotide chain by
_______ bonds between _______.
a. hydrogen; a sugar and a phosphate group
b. covalent; two phosphates
c. covalent; two sugars
d. hydrogen; two phosphate groups
e. covalent; a sugar and a phosphate group
Answer: e
Textbook Reference: 4.1 What Are the Chemical Structures and Functions of Nucleic
Acids?
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
10. Nucleic acids and proteins are both polymers made of a set of monomers. Complete
the following analogy: _______ are to nucleotides as side chains are to amino acids.
a. Ribose/deoxyribose sugars
b. Phosphate ions
c. Nitrogenous bases
d. Nucleosides
e. Hydroxyl groups
Answer: c
Textbook Reference: 4.1 What Are the Chemical Structures and Functions of Nucleic
Acids?
Bloom’s Category: 4. Analyzing
11. The “backbone” of a nucleic acid molecule is made of
a. nitrogenous bases.
b. alternating sugar and phosphate groups.
c. purines.
© 2014 Sinauer Associates, Inc.
, d. pyrimidines.
e. nucleosides.
Answer: b
Textbook Reference: 4.1 What Are the Chemical Structures and Functions of Nucleic
Acids?
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
12. DNA differs from RNA in that
a. RNA contains uracil instead of thymine.
b. RNA is single-stranded; DNA is double-stranded.
c. RNA leaves the nucleus, DNA does not.
d. RNA contains ribose; DNA contains deoxyribose.
e. All of the above
Answer: e
Textbook Reference: 4.1 What Are the Chemical Structures and Functions of Nucleic
Acids?
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
13. Which of the following statements about DNA and RNA is false?
a. DNA has thymine, whereas RNA has uracil.
b. DNA usually has two polynucleotide strands, whereas RNA usually has one strand.
c. DNA has deoxyribose sugar, whereas RNA has ribose sugar.
d. DNA is a polymer, whereas RNA is a monomer.
e. In DNA, A pairs with T, whereas in RNA, A pairs with U.
Answer: d
Textbook Reference: 4.1 What Are the Chemical Structures and Functions of Nucleic
Acids?
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
14. In DNA, bonding of A with T and bonding of C with G are examples of
a. complementary base pairing.
b. a dehydration reaction.
c. a reduction reaction.
d. a hydrophobic interaction.
e. a purine–purine interaction.
Answer: a
Textbook Reference: 4.1 What Are the Chemical Structures and Functions of Nucleic
Acids?
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
15. What type of bond connects two complementary nucleotides?
a. Hydrogen
b. Ionic
c. Peptide
d. Phosphodiester
e. Covalent
© 2014 Sinauer Associates, Inc.
