plumiCardiac output and control of heart and ventilation rate: Edexcel International A Level Biology questions
Edexcel International A Level Biology past-paper questions on 7.3.2 Cardiac output and control of heart and ventilation rate, 2019–2025, with mark schemes and examiner’s reports where available.
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All 46 questions on Cardiac output and control of heart and ventilation rate, as a list
- June 2025, Unit 5, Q5(a)(i) (3 marks): Describe three conclusions from this investigation. (3)
- June 2025, Unit 5, Q5(a)(ii) (4 marks): Describe how the systole and diastole parts of the cardiac cycle are controlled during the exercise. (4)
- June 2025, Unit 5, Q5(b) (2 marks): At rest, a heart pumps 5 dm3 minute–1 of blood and has a heart rate of 72 beats minute–1. Calculate the stroke volume. Use the equation: cardiac output = heart
- January 2025, Unit 5, Q6(c) (6 marks): Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is one of the biggest causes of death in the world. In 2021, nearly 25% of all deaths were attributed to CVD. Exercise can help pre
- January 2025, Unit 5, Q8(f) (2 marks): Suggest how ‘a high nitrate content’ in beetroot juice can lead to an increased blood flow to muscles (paragraph 29). (2)
- October 2024, Unit 5, Q4(c) (4 marks): In an investigation, different concentrations of dopamine were given to Drosophila (fruit flies). The mean heart rates of groups of 10 Drosophila were recorded
- October 2024, Unit 5, Q5(a)(ii) (4 marks): Explain how the heart rate and ventilation rate of a pronghorn are increased to enable it to run long distances at high speeds. (4)
- June 2024, Unit 5, Q6(a)(ii) (6 marks): The table and graph show some of the results of this investigation. Lactate concentration in blood / mmol dm–3 Intensity of exercise / a.u. Athlete Non-athlete
- January 2024, Unit 5, Q6(b) (6 marks): Exercise has many benefits for the health and wellbeing of an individual. An investigation was carried out on non‑athletes and athletes. All participants did a
- October 2023, Unit 5, Q4(a) (2 marks): Describe two conclusions that can be drawn from these data. (2)
- October 2023, Unit 5, Q4(c)(i) (2 marks): Suggest two reasons why humans can have a different lifespan from other mammals. (2)
- October 2023, Unit 5, Q4(c)(ii) (1 mark): State why cardiac output provides more information than the resting heart rate. (1)
- October 2023, Unit 5, Q4(c)(iii) (4 marks): An African giraffe has the longest stride of all land mammals and can run at a speed of up to 60 km hr–1. Describe how the nervous system affects cardiac output
- October 2023, Unit 6, Q2(d) (3 marks): Describe how the ventilation centre in the medulla oblongata controls the ventilation rate. (3)
- June 2023, Unit 5, Q3(a) (2 marks): State two lung conditions that affect the ventilation rate of a human. (2)
- June 2023, Unit 5, Q3(b)(i) (3 marks): Comment on the relationship between the mean resting ventilation rate and the body mass of animals. (3)
- June 2023, Unit 5, Q3(c) (4 marks): An increase in activity level results in a change in the ventilation rate. Describe why this change occurs and how it is controlled. (4)
- June 2023, Unit 5, Q8(b) (4 marks): Describe how the vagus nerve is involved in the control of heart rate (paragraph 6). (4)
- January 2023, Unit 5, Q5(c)(ii) (4 marks): Cigarette smoking causes inflammation in the lungs. This can result in damage to the walls of the alveoli and lead to COPD. Cigarette smoking also causes the pr
- January 2023, Unit 5, Q6(c)(i) (2 marks): A patient had a heart rate of 65 beats min–1 and a stroke volume of 57 cm3 per beat. Calculate the cardiac output for this individual. Use the equation: stroke
- January 2023, Unit 5, Q6(c)(ii) (1 mark): The cardiac index for patient A was 2.92 dm3 min–1 m –2 Which is the correct cardiac index for patient B? (1) A 1.24 B 2.48 C 2.92 D 5.21
- January 2023, Unit 5, Q6(c)(iii) (1 mark): State the ratio of the body surface area of patient A to patient B. (1) Answer
- January 2023, Unit 5, Q6(d)(i) (2 marks): Comment on the effect of running speed on cardiac output. (2)
- January 2023, Unit 5, Q6(d)(ii) (3 marks): Exercise increases the rate of respiration in muscles. Explain how an increase in the rate of respiration causes an increase in the heart rate of an athlete. (3
- October 2022, Unit 5, Q4(a)(i) (2 marks): Describe the relationships between resting heart rate and the data shown in the table. (2)
- October 2022, Unit 5, Q4(b)(i) (4 marks): Explain how the heart rate of a cheetah can be increased during a chase. (4)
- June 2022, Unit 5, Q6(b)(i) (2 marks): Calculate the cardiac output for a person who has a heart rate of 77 bpm and a stroke volume of 70 cm3. Give your answer to two significant figures in dm3 hour–
- June 2022, Unit 5, Q6(b)(ii) (3 marks): The formula shows how to calculate the cardiac index. This is a method of adjusting cardiac output values for the body surface area of an individual. 3 − 1 card
- June 2022, Unit 5, Q6(b)(iii) (6 marks): Ageing is associated with changes in the way the heart responds to adrenaline. In an investigation, the effects of adrenaline on the hearts of young people and
- June 2022, Unit 5, Q8(a) (4 marks): The autonomic nervous system regulates aspects of respiration (paragraph 1). Describe how the autonomic nervous system regulates the breathing rate when a perso
- January 2022, Unit 5, Q2(c) (3 marks): In an investigation, an athlete ran for 10 minutes on a running machine moving at constant speed. The investigation was repeated at seven running speeds. At eac
- January 2022, Unit 5, Q3(b)(i) (3 marks): Comment on the changes in heart rate of the whale when diving. (3)
- January 2022, Unit 5, Q3(b)(ii) (3 marks): Explain how the changes in heart rate are controlled when the whale returns to the surface immediately after the dive. (3)
- October 2021, Unit 5, Q7(a) (3 marks): Calculate the percentage difference in the change in heart rate when using drug B between 5 and 12.5 minutes. (3) Answer %
- October 2021, Unit 5, Q7(b) (3 marks): Compare and contrast the effects of drug A and drug B on the heart rate during the investigation. (3)
- October 2021, Unit 5, Q7(c) (3 marks): Explain the effect of these drugs on the control of the heart rate. (3)
- October 2021, Unit 6, Q2(a)(iii) (2 marks): During exercise, respiratory minute ventilation increases. Explain why it is necessary for the respiratory minute ventilation to increase during exercise. (2)
- June 2021, Unit 5, Q6(b)(i) (3 marks): Explain why there is a change in the cardiac cycle during this exercise. (3)
- June 2021, Unit 5, Q6(b)(ii) (1 mark): The table shows the effect of the training programme on the cardiac output and resting heart rate of this football player. When measurements Cardiac output Rest
- January 2021, Unit 5, Q6(a) (3 marks): The heart rate of the unfit person decreased by 16%, 120 seconds after exercise. Calculate the difference in percentage decrease in heart rate of these two peop
- January 2021, Unit 5, Q6(b) (3 marks): Calculate the heart rate of the unfit person at 5 minutes. The change in heart rate of the unfit person is a linear relationship. Use the equation for a straigh
- January 2021, Unit 5, Q6(c) (3 marks): Explain the difference in the time it would take for these two individuals to recover from the exercise. (3)
- January 2021, Unit 5, Q6(d) (4 marks): Describe how heart rate is controlled in response to changes in the blood, following exercise. (4)
- October 2020, Unit 5, Q4(a) (2 marks): The table gives some information about the effect of the intensity of exercise on heart rate. Intensity of Heart rate exercise / a.u. / bpm 4 118 6 120 8 138 10
- October 2020, Unit 5, Q4(b) (3 marks): Regular swimming affects resting heart rate and cardiac output. cardiac output = stroke volume × heart rate The table shows the mean resting cardiac output and
- October 2020, Unit 5, Q4(c) (6 marks): Explain the role of the heart in responding to regular exercise. Use the information in both tables and your own knowledge to support your answer. (6)
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