Variety of living organisms: Edexcel International GCSE Biology questions

Every Edexcel International GCSE Biology exam question on Variety of living organisms (specification points 1.2–1.4), 2019–2025, with its mark scheme and examiner’s report.

All 41 questions on Variety of living organisms, as a list

June 2025, Paper 1, Q1(a)(i) (1 mark): Which group contains Euglena? (1) A bacteria B fungi C protoctists D viruses
June 2025, Paper 2, Q1(c)(i) (1 mark): Read the passage below. Use the information in the passage and your own knowledge to answer the questions that follow. Rivers – the arteries of the world Rivers
June 2025 (R), Paper 1, Q1(a)(i) (1 mark): Which of these is a correct statement about the fungus, Mucor? (1) A Mucor is a eukaryotic organism with cell walls made of chitin B Mucor is a eukaryotic organ
June 2025 (R), Paper 1, Q1(a)(ii) (1 mark): Plant cells contain chloroplasts, cytoplasm and starch. How many of these are also present in a fungus such as Mucor? (1) A 0 B 1 C 2 D 3
June 2025 (R), Paper 1, Q1(a)(iii) (2 marks): The fungus in the diagram is circular with a radius of 45 mm. Calculate the area, in mm2 , of this circle. Give your answer to 2 significant figures. [area = πr
June 2024, Paper 1, Q1(b)(iii) (2 marks): Ticks can pass diseases between organisms. Suggest how ticks can pass diseases from one organism to another. (2)
June 2024 (R), Paper 1, Q5(a)(i) (1 mark): Phytoplankton are protoctists that photosynthesise. Which of the following features do phytoplankton share with plants? (1) 1 chitin cell wall 2 chloroplast 3 n
November 2023, Paper 1, Q7(a) (8 marks): Complete the passage about bacteria by writing a suitable word or words in each blank space. (8) Bacteria are small celled organisms. They have a cell membrane
June 2023, Paper 1, Q1(a)(ii) (1 mark): Some organisms are pathogens. Which of these organisms can cause a bacterial disease in humans? (1) A Chlorella B Lactobacillus bulgaricus C Mucor D Pneumococcu
June 2023, Paper 1, Q1(b)(i) (2 marks): Describe the effect of a named virus that infects plants. (2)
June 2023, Paper 1, Q1(b)(ii) (3 marks): Give three differences between the structure of viruses and bacteria. (3) 1 2 3
June 2023 (R), Paper 1, Q1(a)(ii) (1 mark): Which row of the table gives the components that are found in all bacteria and in all eukaryotic cells? (1) Cytoplasm Cell surface membrane Cell wall A ü ü ü B
June 2023 (R), Paper 1, Q4(a)(i) (1 mark): What substance is the cell wall of a yeast cell made of? (1) A cellulose B chitin C glycogen D starch
January 2023, Paper 1, Q8(a)(i) (1 mark): Which group of organisms does yeast belong to? (1) A bacteria B fungi C plants D protoctists
January 2023, Paper 1, Q8(a)(ii) (1 mark): Which substance is the cell wall of a yeast cell made of? (1) A cellulose B chitin C sucrose D starch
January 2023, Paper 2, Q6(a) (1 mark): The rabies virus is a pathogen. Which other groups of microorganisms include pathogens? (1) A bacteria and fungi only B bacteria, fungi, and protoctists C bacte
January 2023 (R), Paper 1, Q2(a)(i) (1 mark): Tobacco mosaic virus particles consist of a molecule of RNA surrounded by a coat. Which substance is the coat made from? (1) A cellulose B chitin C protein D st
January 2023 (R), Paper 1, Q2(a)(ii) (3 marks): The virus particle labelled P has an actual length of 0.3 μm. Calculate the magnification of this virus particle. [1 mm = 1000 μm] (3) magnification = ×
June 2022, Paper 1, Q2(a) (4 marks): Complete the passage about fungi by writing a suitable word or words in each blank space. (4) Fungi do not carry out photosynthesis. Their body is usually organ
June 2022, Paper 2, Q3(a)(i) (1 mark): Which of these groups of organisms contains Chlorella? (1) A animals B bacteria C plants D protoctists
June 2022 (R), Paper 1, Q2(a)(i) (1 mark): Yeast is a single‑celled organism. A yeast cell has a nucleus, and the cell wall is made of chitin. Which group of organisms does yeast belong to? (1) A animals
January 2022, Paper 2, Q2(a) (3 marks): Describe how a saprotrophic fungus such as mould obtains its food. (3)
January 2022 (R), Paper 1, Q3(a)(ii) (1 mark): What substance is the yeast cell wall made of? (1) A cellulose B chitin C glycogen D starch
January 2022 (R), Paper 1, Q3(a)(iii) (1 mark): Which of these structures found in the yeast cell would also be present in a prokaryotic cell? (1) A cell membrane B mitochondrion C nucleus D vacuole
November 2021, Paper 1, Q1(b)(i) (1 mark): Which type of organism is shown growing on the bread? (1) A bacterium B fungus C protoctist D virus
June 2021, Paper 1, Q4(a)(i) (1 mark): Which row of the table is correct for this yeast cell? (1) Substance in cell wall Substance stored in cytoplasm A cellulose glycogen B cellulose starch C chitin
June 2021, Paper 1, Q4(a)(ii) (1 mark): Which type of organism is a yeast cell? (1) A a bacterium B a fungus C a plant D a protoctist
June 2021, Paper 2, Q2(a) (2 marks): Give two structures in this bacterium that are also found in all eukaryotic cells. (2) 1 2
June 2021, Paper 2, Q2(b)(i) (1 mark): What is a correct conclusion about P. multocida from these results? (1) A they are decomposers B they are pathogens C they are microscopic D they are non-living
January 2021, Paper 1, Q9(c) (1 mark): Sickle cell anaemia is more common in countries where malaria is found. This is because having an allele for sickle cell anaemia can reduce the likelihood of de
November 2020, Paper 1, Q1(a)(i) (1 mark): Which of these is found in this bacterium? (1) A cellulose B chitin C cytoplasm D nucleus
November 2020, Paper 1, Q1(b) (2 marks): Probiotics are live microorganisms that can have health benefits when consumed. Scientists investigate the ability of probiotics and cranberry juice to reduce t
November 2020, Paper 2, Q1(b) (3 marks): Read the passage below. Use the information in the passage and your own knowledge to answer the questions that follow. Schistosomiasis Schistosomiasis is an inf
November 2020, Paper 2, Q1(d) (1 mark): Read the passage below. Use the information in the passage and your own knowledge to answer the questions that follow. Schistosomiasis Schistosomiasis is an inf
November 2020, Paper 2, Q1(e) (2 marks): Read the passage below. Use the information in the passage and your own knowledge to answer the questions that follow. Schistosomiasis Schistosomiasis is an inf
November 2020 (R), Paper 2, Q5(a) (6 marks): Describe the different types of pathogen. Refer to a disease that each type of pathogen causes in your answer. (6)
January 2020, Paper 1, Q2(a) (3 marks): State three differences between eukaryotic and prokaryotic organisms. (3) 1 2 3
January 2020, Paper 1, Q2(b) (2 marks): Give an example of a disease caused by a protoctist. (2) name of protoctist name of disease
January 2020 (R), Paper 1, Q4(a) (1 mark): Name the part labelled X. (1)
June 2019, Paper 2, Q3(a)(i) (1 mark): Which of these is a feature of fungi? (1) A chloroplasts in the cytoplasm B starch stored in the cytoplasm C thread-like hyphae D walls made of cellulose
June 2019 (R), Paper 1, Q1(d)(i) (3 marks): Explain how this fungus feeds on the corn. (3)

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