Adrenaline at work — questions

1. identify

Which of these describes a hormone?

Circle one answer.

• A chemical made by a gland, which travels in the blood and changes what certain organs do.
• An electrical signal made by a neurone, which travels along nerves to one muscle.
• A chemical taken in with food, which travels in the blood and is needed by every cell.
• A chemical made by a gland, which travels along nerves and changes what every organ does.

Nudge (only if you are stuck): Check four parts in each option: what it is, where it is made, how it travels and what it acts on.

2. identify

How is a hormone carried from the gland that makes it to its target organs?

Circle one answer.

• By diffusing from cell to cell through the tissues.
• Along nerves.
• Through tubes that lead from the gland to each target organ.
• In the blood.

Nudge (only if you are stuck): In the experiment, how did adrenaline get from the adrenal glands to the heart?

3. identify

A person is in a "fight or flight" situation, and their adrenal glands secrete adrenaline. Which row shows the changes that adrenaline causes?

Circle one answer.

• A
• B
• C
• D

Nudge (only if you are stuck): For each column, ask whether the change would help the body to fight or to run.

4. identify

Which glands secrete adrenaline?

Circle one answer.

• The adrenal glands.
• The heart.
• The kidneys.
• The pancreas.

Nudge (only if you are stuck): In the experiment, where did the adrenaline start before it passed into the blood?

5. identify

What is a target organ of a hormone?

Circle one answer.

• An organ whose activity the hormone alters.
• Any organ that the blood carries the hormone to.
• The gland that produces the hormone.
• The organ that breaks the hormone down.

Nudge (only if you are stuck): The blood carries the hormone everywhere. Which organs change?

6. calculate

A rock climber's foothold breaks, and she is left hanging from her rope. The table shows some measurements before and one minute later. Calculate the increase in her breathing rate.

Increase in breathing rate (breaths per minute): ______________ unit ________

Nudge (only if you are stuck): Use the breathing rate row only.

7. explain

Insulin is made by the pancreas, passes into the blood and makes the liver change what it does. Use the description of a hormone to explain why insulin is a hormone.

Nudge (only if you are stuck): Check each part of the description against insulin.

8. explain

A zebra grazing at dusk hears a lion, and its adrenal glands secrete adrenaline. Explain how each of the three effects of adrenaline could help the zebra to escape.

Increased breathing rate

Increased heart rate

Increased pupil diameter

Nudge (only if you are stuck): Breathing, heart, eyes: what does each change let in, or carry faster?

9. explain

Two organs, P and Q, are supplied with the same blood, carrying the same concentration of a hormone. The activity of P changes, but the activity of Q does not. Explain this difference.

Nudge (only if you are stuck): What has to be true of an organ for a hormone to change its activity?

10. calculate

Use the table of the rock climber. Calculate the percentage increase in her pupil diameter. Give your answer to 2 significant figures.

Percentage increase in pupil diameter: ______________ unit ________

Nudge (only if you are stuck): Compare the increase with the value before the change.

11. identify

Supplement: what does adrenaline do to the blood glucose concentration?

Circle one answer.

• It has no effect on it: only insulin changes it.
• It increases it: the liver releases glucose into the blood.
• It increases it: the stomach digests food faster.
• It decreases it: the liver takes glucose out of the blood.

Nudge (only if you are stuck): Which organ does adrenaline act on to change the glucose in the blood?

12. predict / explain

Supplement: suppose a person's liver could not respond to adrenaline. Predict what would happen to their blood glucose concentration during a fright while they sit still, and explain your choice.

Circle one answer.

• It would rise more than usual, because more adrenaline builds up.
• It would stay close to its value before the fright.
• It would rise as usual, because the heart rate still increases.
• It would fall to almost zero within a minute.

Explain your choice

Nudge (only if you are stuck): Which organ does adrenaline make release glucose into the blood?

13. calculate

Supplement: the rock climber's blood glucose concentration was 85 mg per 100 cm³ of blood before the foothold broke and 118 mg per 100 cm³ five minutes later. (a) Calculate the increase. (b) Calculate the mean rate of increase per minute.

(a) Increase (mg per 100 cm³): ______________ unit ________

(b) Mean rate of increase (mg per 100 cm³ per minute): ______________ unit ________

Nudge (only if you are stuck): For (b), share the increase equally between the minutes.

14. predict / state

A cat sees a large dog and its fur stands on end. Predict what happens to the cat's heart rate, breathing rate and pupil diameter, and state the hormone responsible.

Heart rate

Breathing rate

Pupil diameter

Hormone

Nudge (only if you are stuck): What might the cat have to do in the next few seconds?

15. identify

Plants make a substance called auxin in the cells of their shoot tips. It moves to other cells in the shoot and makes them grow longer. Which two parts of the description of a human hormone does auxin not fit? Choose two.

Tick every correct statement.

• It is not a chemical substance.
• It is not produced by a gland.
• It does not alter the activity of other cells.
• It is not carried by the blood.

Nudge (only if you are stuck): Check each part of the description: what it is, where it is made, how it travels, what it acts on.

16. explain

Supplement: a goalkeeper waits for a penalty kick, and his adrenal glands secrete adrenaline. Explain how this could help his muscles when he dives.

Nudge (only if you are stuck): What does a muscle need to contract hard, and how does adrenaline change the supply?