The Hormonal Control of Blood Glucose and the Management of Diabetes | OCR A-Level Biology B (Advancing Biology) (H422)
The Hormonal Control of Blood Glucose and the Management of Diabetes
- 64 questions
- 4 subtopics
- Biology content, examined on all three papers
- Component 01, Component 02 and Component 03
The Hormonal Control of Blood Glucose and the Management of Diabetes is examined in all three written papers — the specification states that Components 01, 02 and 03 can each assess content from any of the five modules, so nothing is confined to one paper.
It covers the pancreas as an endocrine gland, the regulation of blood glucose by negative feedback, types of diabetes and diagnostic testing and treating and managing diabetes.
Sample questions from The Hormonal Control of Blood Glucose and the Management of Diabetes
Answer each one closed book first, then open the answer.
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The pancreas as an endocrine gland
Why does the acinar tissue of the pancreas take up stain more heavily than an islet does?
Show the answer
Acinar cells are packed with rough endoplasmic reticulum and with granules of digestive enzyme, and these structures bind a great deal of stain. -
The pancreas as an endocrine gland
How is an eyepiece graticule calibrated so that the diameter of an islet can be measured?
Show the answer
A stage micrometer with a scale of known length is placed on the stage and viewed through the graticule, and the number of micrometres represented by one graticule division is worked out for that objective lens. -
The regulation of blood glucose by negative feedback
How does insulin increase the rate at which a muscle cell takes up glucose?
Show the answer
Insulin binding to its receptor causes vesicles carrying GLUT4 glucose transporter proteins to fuse with the cell surface membrane, so there are more channels through which glucose can enter by facilitated diffusion. -
The regulation of blood glucose by negative feedback
How does glucagon act on a liver cell through a second messenger?
Show the answer
Glucagon binds to a receptor on the liver cell surface membrane, activating the enzyme adenylyl cyclase, which converts ATP into cyclic AMP; the cyclic AMP activates protein kinase enzymes that in turn activate the enzymes hydrolysing glycogen to glucose. -
Types of diabetes and diagnostic testing
Why is Type 2 diabetes often not diagnosed until several years after it has begun?
Show the answer
It develops gradually and its early symptoms are mild and easily attributed to other causes, so many people are only found during a routine test or when a complication appears. -
Types of diabetes and diagnostic testing
What result of a glucose tolerance test confirms diabetes?
Show the answer
A blood glucose concentration of 11.1 mmol dm⁻³ or above two hours after the glucose drink. -
Treating and managing diabetes
What is the main way in which metformin lowers blood glucose concentration?
Show the answer
It reduces the amount of glucose released into the blood by the liver and increases the sensitivity of body cells to insulin. -
Treating and managing diabetes
Why is a person with diabetes referred to a dietician?
Show the answer
The dietician works out an individual eating plan, teaches carbohydrate counting so that insulin doses can be matched to meals, and supports weight loss.
The 4 subtopics
One subtopic is one session. Work down the list.
| Subtopic | What it covers | Questions |
|---|---|---|
| The pancreas as an endocrine gland | Recall questions on the gland's dual role, telling islet from acinar tissue in a stained section, the organelles abundant in a beta cell, graticule calibration, and magnification calculations. | 14 |
| The regulation of blood glucose by negative feedback | Recall questions on how β cells secrete insulin, insulin receptors, GLUT4 and target tissues, glycogenesis, glucagon from α cells, glycogenolysis through cyclic AMP, gluconeogenesis, why muscle glycogen cannot raise blood glucose, and insulin and glucagon as antagonistic hormones. | 15 |
| Types of diabetes and diagnostic testing | Recall questions on the causes and onset of each type, risk factors for insulin resistance, why glucose appears in urine, fasting and tolerance testing, and how a biosensor works. | 17 |
| Treating and managing diabetes | Recall questions on injecting insulin and the basal-bolus regime, hypoglycaemia, weight loss, exercise and diet in Type 2 diabetes, metformin and sulfonylureas, glycosylated haemoglobin, the diabetes nurse, dietician, retinal screener and podiatrist, evidence-based practice, and the rising global burden. | 18 |
How the guide is worked
Answering a question from memory stores it far better than reading the answer again. The guide runs that as a fixed procedure on one subtopic at a time, about twenty minutes a session.
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Step 1 · Closed book
Cover the answers. Work through one subtopic and write down what you can. Leave blanks where you have nothing.
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Step 2 · Open book
Go back to the top. Read each printed answer and write it out in full, including the ones you had right.
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Step 3 · Closed book again
Same questions, same order, from memory. The gap between pass one and pass three is the session result.
Read the full method, the return schedule and the research behind it.
Nearby topics
OCR A-Level Biology B (Advancing Biology) Active Recall Guide
Every topic, not just this one. 2,895 questions with their answers.