plumiImmunity, autoimmune diseases and vaccination: OCR A‑Level Biology A questions
OCR A-Level Biology A past-paper questions on 4.1.1.6 Immunity, autoimmune diseases and vaccination, 2016–2025, with mark schemes and examiner’s reports where available.
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Q3(c)(i)
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All 40 questions on Immunity, autoimmune diseases and vaccination, as a list
- June 2025, Paper 3, Q3(c)(i) (1 mark): State the name given to diseases such as MG. [1]
- June 2025, AS Paper 1, Q17 (1 mark): A pregnant woman is infected by a virus that causes the common cold. She has an immune response and produces antibodies that are passed on to her fetus. What ty
- June 2025, AS Paper 1, Q23(c)(i) (2 marks): Some students choose to carry out a Student’s t-test to analyse the data for the drug treatment. With reference to the data, suggest whether a Student’s t-test
- June 2025, AS Paper 1, Q23(c)(ii) (2 marks): The students conclude that CYC is the most effective drug in reducing plasma cell numbers. Identify two reasons why the conclusion might not be supported. 1 2 [
- June 2024, Paper 2, Q19(a)(i) (1 mark): Suggest the contents of the original anti-polio vaccine. [1]
- June 2024, Paper 2, Q19(b)(i) (2 marks): Calculate the percentage decrease in cases between 1956 and 1960. % decrease = [2]
- June 2024, Paper 2, Q19(b)(ii) (2 marks): A student wants to use the calculation in part (b)(i) to support a conclusion about the effectiveness of the polio vaccination. Another student argues that it w
- June 2024, Paper 2, Q19(b)(iii) (1 mark): There were cases of polio in England and Wales in the 1980s. The scale used on the graph is not sensitive enough to show changes in the number of cases during t
- June 2024, Paper 2, Q19(b)(iv) (2 marks): Between 90% and 95% of UK children are currently fully vaccinated against polio. In 2022 some particles of polio virus were detected in sewage in London. As a r
- June 2024, Paper 3, Q5(f)(ii) (1 mark): Future treatments for type 1 diabetes may be able to use stem cells from a patient’s body to produce new β-cells. Explain why patients receiving these new β-cel
- June 2023, Paper 2, Q19(c)(i) (1 mark): Snakebites can be treated using Fab fragments. Antibodies specific to the snake venom are produced using donor animals, usually sheep. These antibodies are coll
- June 2023, AS Paper 2, Q5(a)(i) (2 marks): Using the data provided in the table, calculate the percentage decrease in the number of vaccinations administered in England between 2013 and 2014. Give your a
- June 2023, AS Paper 2, Q5(a)(ii) (4 marks): Student A studied the data in the table and made the following statement: ‘The MMR vaccination programme is not working because although the number of children
- June 2023, AS Paper 2, Q5(a)(iii) (3 marks): A student made the following statement about the influenza (flu) vaccination programme: ‘The flu vaccination programme involves giving the same flu vaccine to d
- June 2023, AS Paper 2, Q5(a)(iv) (2 marks): Explain how vaccination programmes can play a role in preventing epidemics. [2]
- June 2023, AS Paper 2, Q5(b)(i) (1 mark): Explain the meaning of the term autoimmune disease. [1]
- June 2022, Paper 3, Q1(b) (1 mark): A condition called rheumatic heart disease can occur when a person’s antibodies attack antigens on their own heart cells. State the name of the type of disease
- June 2022, AS Paper 1, Q19 (1 mark): Convalescent plasma immunity is one method used to treat patients infected with Ebola virus disease (EVD). In this method, blood plasma is taken from a person w
- June 2022, AS Paper 2, Q4(b)(i) (1 mark): Identify the type of immunity given by an influenza vaccine. [1]
- November 2021, Paper 2, Q7 (1 mark): Lupus is an autoimmune disease that affects the skin, joints and internal organs. Which of the following is likely to be an effective treatment for lupus? A imm
- November 2021, Paper 2, Q8 (1 mark): Lupus is a rare condition affecting approximately 0.025% of the population. However, 9 out of 10 sufferers are women. The population of England and Wales in 201
- November 2021, Paper 3, Q1(c)(iv) (1 mark): Another disease that affects dogs is caused by parvovirus. Dogs can be vaccinated against parvovirus at six weeks of age. Suggest what the parvovirus vaccine is
- November 2021, Paper 3, Q1(c)(v) (1 mark): Dogs need a booster vaccination against parvovirus when they are one year old. Explain why a booster vaccination is needed. [1]
- November 2020, Paper 2, Q22(c)(i) (1 mark): Use a tick (V) to indicate in the table below which type of immunity is functioning in a leukaemia patient when given chickenpox antibodies. Type of immunity na
- November 2020, Paper 2, Q22(c)(ii) (2 marks): Explain your answer to part (i). .. [2]
- November 2020, AS Paper 2, Q2(d)(i) (2 marks): Using the information provided, calculate how many of the world’s Lupus sufferers by the end of 2019 would be photosensitive. number of photosensitive Lupus suf
- November 2020, AS Paper 2, Q2(d)(ii) (1 mark): Lupus symptoms include pain in joints, inflammation, fatigue, fever and a skin rash. Suggest what component of sunlight causes photosensitivity and which sympto
- November 2020, AS Paper 2, Q2(d)(iii) (2 marks): Explain what is meant by an autoimmune disease and suggest why members of the same family can be sufferers of autoimmune diseases. [2]
- November 2020, AS Paper 2, Q4(a) (4 marks): A student looking at the data in Fig. 4.1 and Fig. 4.2 made the following conclusion: ƇThe data shows that a vaccination program is a successful way of reducing
- November 2020, AS Paper 2, Q4(b) (3 marks): Complete the following sequence to outline how a vaccine gives an individual immunity. The first two steps have been completed for you. Step 1: A vaccine is pro
- November 2020, AS Paper 2, Q4(c) (2 marks): Measles is a highly contagious viral infection. In October 2018, an outbreak of the disease on the island of Madagascar resulted in more than 50 000 cases of me
- June 2019, AS Paper 1, Q26(b) (3 marks): A student wrote the following passage in an essay on the immune system. Immunisation programmes involve injecting individuals with a small amount of the safe an
- June 2018, Paper 2, Q9 (1 mark): Which of the following describes an autoimmune disease? A a disease in which an individual’s own body cells are antigenic B a disease in which a pathogen attack
- June 2018, AS Paper 1, Q2 (1 mark): Autoimmune diseases are often treated with a course of antibody injections. Which of the following statements, A to D, describes the immunity arising from this
- June 2017, Paper 3, Q2(a)(ii) (2 marks): Coeliac disease is caused by an immune reaction to gliadins in a person’s digestive system. The immune system produces antibodies that bind to part of the gliad
- June 2017, Paper 3, Q5(a)(i) (2 marks): Suggest how the immune system causes damage to the nervous system. [2]
- June 2017, AS Paper 1, Q14 (1 mark): Lupus is an autoimmune disease. One symptom is a facial rash, typically in a butterfly shape across the cheeks. Following a blood test, which of the following w
- June 2017, AS Paper 1, Q16 (1 mark): An individual bitten by a rabid dog can be treated by an injection of human rabies antibodies. Which option, A to D, describes the type of immunity provided by
- June 2017, AS Paper 2, Q4(b) (3 marks): Fig. 4 shows the concentration of antibodies in a patient’s bloodstream following an influenza (flu) vaccination, and then a subsequent infection with the influ
- June 2016, AS Paper 1, Q8 (1 mark): Measles is a serious disease that can be prevented by vaccination. The chart below shows the Measles-containing Vaccine (MCV) coverage and annual reported cases
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