plumiCell division: AQA GCSE Biology questions
Every AQA GCSE Biology exam question on 4.1.2 Cell division, 2018–2025, with its mark scheme and examiner’s report.
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Q01.2
The whole paper ↗![June 2025 Paper 1 Foundation, question 01.2: Name one structure found in the nucleus. [1 mark]](https://pub-e8a9dbab8e2a4d089f52b2a45e0d0b50.r2.dev/bank/84611f-jun25-01-2-qp.webp)
Q06.1
The whole paper ↗![June 2025 Paper 2 Higher, question 06.1: Which cell division in Figure 5 represents mitosis? [1 mark] Tick () one box. Cell division 1 Cell division 2 Cell division 3](https://pub-e8a9dbab8e2a4d089f52b2a45e0d0b50.r2.dev/bank/84612h-jun25-06-1-qp.webp)
Q06.2
The whole paper ↗![June 2025 Paper 2 Higher, question 06.2: Which two cells in Figure 5 are genetically identical? [1 mark] Tick () one box. A and C B and I F and J G and H](https://pub-e8a9dbab8e2a4d089f52b2a45e0d0b50.r2.dev/bank/84612h-jun25-06-2-qp.webp)
Q06.5
The whole paper ↗![June 2025 Paper 2 Higher, question 06.5: Explain why the offspring produced using runners are genetically identical. [2 marks]](https://pub-e8a9dbab8e2a4d089f52b2a45e0d0b50.r2.dev/bank/84612h-jun25-06-5-qp.webp)
Q03.5
The whole paper ↗![June 2025 Paper 2 Foundation, question 03.5: Which process produces new cells in runners? [1 mark] Tick () one box. Binary fission Evolution Mitosis](https://pub-e8a9dbab8e2a4d089f52b2a45e0d0b50.r2.dev/bank/84612f-jun25-03-5-qp.webp)
Q02.1
The whole paper ↗![June 2024 Paper 1 Higher, question 02.1: Where in a cell would the CF gene be found? [1 mark]](https://pub-e8a9dbab8e2a4d089f52b2a45e0d0b50.r2.dev/bank/84611h-jun24-02-1-qp.webp)
Q04.1
The whole paper ↗![June 2024 Paper 1 Higher, question 04.1: Complete the sentences. [3 marks] The leaf tissue that contains the most chloroplasts is the . The leaf tissue that contains many air spaces is the . The plant](https://pub-e8a9dbab8e2a4d089f52b2a45e0d0b50.r2.dev/bank/84611h-jun24-04-1-qp.webp)
Q04.6
The whole paper ↗
Q08.1
The whole paper ↗
Q08.2
The whole paper ↗![June 2024 Paper 1 Higher, question 08.2: Name structure Z in Figure 8. [1 mark]](https://pub-e8a9dbab8e2a4d089f52b2a45e0d0b50.r2.dev/bank/84611h-jun24-08-2-qp.webp)
Q08.4
The whole paper ↗![June 2024 Paper 1 Higher, question 08.4: Explain why a cell cannot complete division when affected by drug X. [2 marks]](https://pub-e8a9dbab8e2a4d089f52b2a45e0d0b50.r2.dev/bank/84611h-jun24-08-4-qp.webp)
Q08.5
The whole paper ↗![June 2024 Paper 1 Higher, question 08.5: Give the reason why a drug that stops cell division helps to treat cancer. [1 mark]](https://pub-e8a9dbab8e2a4d089f52b2a45e0d0b50.r2.dev/bank/84611h-jun24-08-5-qp.webp)
Q05.2
The whole paper ↗![June 2024 Paper 1 Foundation, question 05.2: What type of cell division occurs in cancerous cells? [1 mark] Tick () one box. Binary fission Fertilisation Mitosis](https://pub-e8a9dbab8e2a4d089f52b2a45e0d0b50.r2.dev/bank/84611f-jun24-05-2-qp.webp)
Q05.3
The whole paper ↗![June 2024 Paper 1 Foundation, question 05.3: Complete the sentences. Choose answers from the box. [2 marks] decrease fertilise grow replicate Before a cell divides, the cell needs to . Before a cell divide](https://pub-e8a9dbab8e2a4d089f52b2a45e0d0b50.r2.dev/bank/84611f-jun24-05-3-qp.webp)
Q05.4
The whole paper ↗![June 2024 Paper 1 Foundation, question 05.4: What percentage of the time taken for the cell cycle does the cell growth stage take? Use Figure 4. [1 mark] Tick () one box. 10% 20% 40% 90%](https://pub-e8a9dbab8e2a4d089f52b2a45e0d0b50.r2.dev/bank/84611f-jun24-05-4-qp.webp)
Q05.5
The whole paper ↗![June 2024 Paper 1 Foundation, question 05.5: What happens during stage X of the cell cycle in Figure 4? [1 mark] Tick () one box. Chromosomes are pulled to each end of the cell. The cell increases in size](https://pub-e8a9dbab8e2a4d089f52b2a45e0d0b50.r2.dev/bank/84611f-jun24-05-5-qp.webp)
Q08.1
The whole paper ↗![June 2024 Paper 1 Foundation, question 08.1: Where in a cell would the CF gene be found? [1 mark]](https://pub-e8a9dbab8e2a4d089f52b2a45e0d0b50.r2.dev/bank/84611f-jun24-08-1-qp.webp)
Q01.2
The whole paper ↗
Q05.5
The whole paper ↗
Q05.6
The whole paper ↗![June 2023 Paper 1 Higher, question 05.6: Describe the process of cell division by mitosis. [3 marks]](https://pub-e8a9dbab8e2a4d089f52b2a45e0d0b50.r2.dev/bank/84611h-jun23-05-6-qp.webp)
All 56 questions on Cell division, as a list
- June 2025, Paper 1 Foundation, Q01.2 (1 mark): Name one structure found in the nucleus. [1 mark]
- June 2025, Paper 2 Higher, Q06.1 (1 mark): Which cell division in Figure 5 represents mitosis? [1 mark] Tick () one box. Cell division 1 Cell division 2 Cell division 3
- June 2025, Paper 2 Higher, Q06.2 (1 mark): Which two cells in Figure 5 are genetically identical? [1 mark] Tick () one box. A and C B and I F and J G and H
- June 2025, Paper 2 Higher, Q06.5 (2 marks): Explain why the offspring produced using runners are genetically identical. [2 marks]
- June 2025, Paper 2 Foundation, Q03.5 (1 mark): Which process produces new cells in runners? [1 mark] Tick () one box. Binary fission Evolution Mitosis
- June 2024, Paper 1 Higher, Q02.1 (1 mark): Where in a cell would the CF gene be found? [1 mark]
- June 2024, Paper 1 Higher, Q04.1 (3 marks): Complete the sentences. [3 marks] The leaf tissue that contains the most chloroplasts is the . The leaf tissue that contains many air spaces is the . The plant
- June 2024, Paper 1 Higher, Q04.6 (1 mark): New phloem cells form when unspecialised plant cells differentiate and become specialised. Describe one change in structure that occurs when an unspecialised ce
- June 2024, Paper 1 Higher, Q08.1 (1 mark): Before a cell begins to divide, its DNA replicates to form two copies of each chromosome. Describe one other change that occurs in a cell before the cell begins
- June 2024, Paper 1 Higher, Q08.2 (1 mark): Name structure Z in Figure 8. [1 mark]
- June 2024, Paper 1 Higher, Q08.4 (2 marks): Explain why a cell cannot complete division when affected by drug X. [2 marks]
- June 2024, Paper 1 Higher, Q08.5 (1 mark): Give the reason why a drug that stops cell division helps to treat cancer. [1 mark]
- June 2024, Paper 1 Foundation, Q05.2 (1 mark): What type of cell division occurs in cancerous cells? [1 mark] Tick () one box. Binary fission Fertilisation Mitosis
- June 2024, Paper 1 Foundation, Q05.3 (2 marks): Complete the sentences. Choose answers from the box. [2 marks] decrease fertilise grow replicate Before a cell divides, the cell needs to . Before a cell divide
- June 2024, Paper 1 Foundation, Q05.4 (1 mark): What percentage of the time taken for the cell cycle does the cell growth stage take? Use Figure 4. [1 mark] Tick () one box. 10% 20% 40% 90%
- June 2024, Paper 1 Foundation, Q05.5 (1 mark): What happens during stage X of the cell cycle in Figure 4? [1 mark] Tick () one box. Chromosomes are pulled to each end of the cell. The cell increases in size
- June 2024, Paper 1 Foundation, Q08.1 (1 mark): Where in a cell would the CF gene be found? [1 mark]
- June 2023, Paper 1 Higher, Q01.2 (1 mark): Tissue in the tip of a plant root contains stem cells. Stem cells can differentiate into any type of cell. Name the type of tissue in plants that contains stem
- June 2023, Paper 1 Higher, Q05.5 (4 marks): One drug for treating malaria prevents mitosis occurring in the malarial protist. The drug stops the synthesis of new DNA bases in the cell. Suggest how the dru
- June 2023, Paper 1 Higher, Q05.6 (3 marks): Describe the process of cell division by mitosis. [3 marks]
- June 2023, Paper 1 Foundation, Q04.5 (1 mark): Mitosis occurs in the malarial protist during asexual reproduction. The protist has 14 chromosomes. How many chromosomes will each new protist cell have after m
- June 2023, Paper 1 Foundation, Q05.1 (1 mark): Proteins are needed to make new body cells by mitosis. Give one reason why a person needs new body cells. [1 mark]
- June 2023, Paper 1 Foundation, Q06.2 (1 mark): Tissue in the tip of a plant root contains stem cells. Stem cells can differentiate into any type of cell. Name the type of tissue in plants that contains stem
- June 2023, Paper 2 Higher, Q08.1 (1 mark): In Figure 13, A is the first stage and F is the final stage. Stages B to E are not in the correct order. Give the correct order of stages A to F. [1 mark] A → →
- June 2022, Paper 1 Higher, Q04.4 (4 marks): The larvae of the hornet moth form when fertilised eggs divide by mitosis. Describe how mitosis produces two genetically identical cells. [4 marks]
- June 2022, Paper 1 Higher, Q04.5 (1 mark): The cells which are first formed from the fertilised eggs of the hornet moth are stem cells. Name the process by which these stem cells then form specialised ce
- June 2022, Paper 1 Foundation, Q02.1 (1 mark): What fraction of the cells in Figure 1 is dividing by mitosis? [1 mark] Tick () one box. 1 8 1 4 1 2 3 4
- June 2022, Paper 1 Foundation, Q02.2 (1 mark): The cells which are not dividing in Figure 1 each contain 10 chromosomes. One of these cells divides by mitosis to produce two new cells. How many chromosomes w
- June 2022, Paper 1 Foundation, Q02.3 (3 marks): Cells divide in a series of stages called the cell cycle. Complete the sentences. Choose answers from the box. [3 marks] contracts divides grows reacts relaxes
- June 2022, Paper 1 Foundation, Q02.4 (1 mark): Which stage of the cell cycle takes the most time? [1 mark] Tick () one box. A B C
- June 2022, Paper 1 Foundation, Q02.5 (1 mark): What percentage of time in the cell cycle is stage A? [1 mark] Tick () one box. 5% 10% 15% 25% Stem cells divide by mitosis.
- June 2022, Paper 1 Foundation, Q02.7 (1 mark): Name one medical condition that could be treated using heart cells created from an embryo. [1 mark]
- June 2022, Paper 1 Foundation, Q02.8 (1 mark): Give one reason why a patient may not want to be treated with heart cells created from an embryo. [1 mark]
- November 2021, Paper 2 Higher, Q01.5 (1 mark): What is happening to the DNA in part Z of Figure 2? [1 mark] Tick () one box. Differentiation Evolution Fertilisation Replication
- November 2021, Paper 2 Foundation, Q08.5 (1 mark): What is happening to the DNA in part Z of Figure 14? [1 mark] Tick () one box. Differentiation Evolution Fertilisation Replication
- November 2020, Paper 1 Higher, Q03.1 (2 marks): Give two similarities between the prokaryotic cell and the eukaryotic cells in Figure 5. [2 marks] 1 2
- November 2020, Paper 1 Higher, Q03.2 (3 marks): Give three differences between the prokaryotic cell and the eukaryotic cells in Figure 5. [3 marks] 1 2 3
- November 2020, Paper 1 Higher, Q03.4 (1 mark): Name the type of cell division that produces genetically identical body cells for growth and repair. [1 mark]
- November 2020, Paper 1 Higher, Q03.5 (1 mark): What percentage of the time for one cell cycle is represented by stage 2 and stage 3 together? [1 mark] Tick () one box. 7% 35% 40% 65%
- November 2020, Paper 1 Higher, Q03.6 (4 marks): Describe what happens during each stage of the cell cycle. [4 marks] Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3
- November 2020, Paper 1 Foundation, Q02.1 (1 mark): Which process makes two identical new body cells for growth and repair? [1 mark] Tick () one box. Differentiation Fertilisation Mitosis Figure 5 shows the thre
- November 2020, Paper 1 Foundation, Q02.2 (2 marks): Draw one line from each stage of the cell cycle to what happens during that stage. [2 marks] Stage of cell cycle What happens during that stage Stage 1 Stage 2
- November 2020, Paper 1 Foundation, Q02.3 (2 marks): What percentage of the total time for the cell cycle is taken by stage 1? [2 marks] Percentage = %
- November 2020, Paper 1 Foundation, Q02.4 (1 mark): A cell divides to form two new cells every 24 hours. How many days will it take for the original cell to divide into 8 cells? [1 mark] Tick () one box. 1 3 6 8
- November 2020, Paper 1 Foundation, Q02.5 (1 mark): The chromosomes contain the genetic material. Name the chemical which the genetic material is made from. [1 mark]
- November 2020, Paper 1 Foundation, Q02.6 (1 mark): The genetic material is made of many small sections. Each section codes for a specific protein. What is one section of genetic material on a chromosome called?
- November 2020, Paper 1 Foundation, Q02.7 (2 marks): Stem cells are cells which have not yet been specialised to carry out a particular job. Bone marrow cells are one example of stem cells. Explain how a transplan
- November 2020, Paper 2 Higher, Q05.1 (3 marks): Describe three differences between the processes of mitosis and meiosis. [3 marks] 1 2 3
- November 2020, Paper 2 Higher, Q05.2 (1 mark): Describe one similarity between the processes of mitosis and meiosis. [1 mark]
- Specimen, Paper 1 Higher, Q02.2: Scientists produced a single plant that contained a TMV-resistant gene. Suggest how scientists can use this plant to produce many plants with the TMV-resistant
- Specimen, Paper 1 Higher, Q09.1 (1 mark): Which photograph in Figure 6 shows a cell that is not going through mitosis? [1 mark Tick one box. A B C
- Specimen, Paper 1 Higher, Q09.2 (2 marks): Describe what is happening in photograph A. [2 marks 8 A student wanted to find out more about the cell cycle. The student made a slide of an onion root tip. Sh
- Specimen, Paper 1 Higher, Q09.3: Each stage of the cell cycle takes a different amount of time. Which stage in Table 4 is the fastest in the cell cycle? Give a reason for your answer. [2 mar St
- Specimen, Paper 1 Higher, Q09.4 (3 marks): The cell cycle in an onion root tip cell takes 16 hours. Calculate the length of time Stage 2 lasts in a typical cell. Give your answer to 2 significant figures
- Specimen, Paper 1 Foundation, Q03.2: Cheek cells are a type of body cell. Body cells grow through cell division. What is the name of this type of cell division? [1 ma Tick one box. Differentiation
- Specimen, Paper 1 Foundation, Q10.2: Scientists produced a single plant that contained a TMV-resistant gene. Suggest how scientists can use this plant to produce many plants with the TMV-resistant
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