MARANDA HIGH SCHOOL

Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education

PRE-MOCK EXAMINATION 2025

231/2 BIOLOGY Paper 2

FEB 2025 – TIME: 2 Hours

Name: ………………………………………………….....…… Adm No: ……….……

Class: ………………Candidate’s Signature: …….………... Date: …..…/03/2025.

INSTRUCTIONS TO CANDIDATES
o Answer all the questions.
o Answers must be written in the spaces provided in the question paper.
o Additional pages must not be inserted.
o Candidates may be penalized for recording irrelevant information and for incorrect spellings.

FOR EXAMINER’S USE ONLY

Section Question Maximum Candidate’s
Score Score
1 8
A 2 8
3 8
4 8
5 8
6 20
B 7 20
8 20
Total Score

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1.(a) Define the term mutation (1 mark)
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A couple, George and Grace had a son who was suffering from haemophilia even though none of them showed
signs of haemophilia.
(i) State the genotype of George and Grace (1mark)
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(ii) Using a genetic cross work out the genotype of the couple’s son (4marks)
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(iii) Name two disorders in human being that are as a result of chromosomal mutation. (2marks)
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2.A seedling with a straight radicle and plumule was attached to a machine drawn below, which rotates making
one complete revolution in 15 minutes. The seedling was lying horizontally.
Transparent
container

Cotton wool
seedling

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a) What would be the observation after a period of one week (1mark)
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b) Account for your results in (a) above (4marks)

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c) What is the name of the machine on which the experiment was carried out? (1mark)
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d) (i) What stimulus was being investigated in this experiment? (1mark)

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(ii) What type of response is expected in this experiment? (1mark)

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3. a) State three modes of transmission of H.I.V/A.I.D.S from an infected person. (3marks)

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(b) Suggest three effective ways of preventing H.I.V / A.I.D.S transmission to un-infected person. (3marks)
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(c) State the function of

(i) Seminiferous tubules (1mark)

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(ii) Oviduct (1mark)

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4.The diagram below represents the pathway of water from the soil into the plant.

film of water
L around soil
particle

Soil

K
(a) Name the structures labeled K and L. (2marks)
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L……………………………………………………………………………………………………...……………

b) Explain how water from the soil reaches the structure labeled L. (5marks)

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c) Name the process by which mineral salts enter into the plant. (1mark)
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5.(a) Define the term Denature. (1mark)

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(b) In an experiment to investigate the action of pepsin on egg albumen, equal amount of pepsin were added to
equal amounts of egg albumen in different test-tubes. The test tubes were placed in water baths at different
temperatures. The graph below shows time taken for the enzyme to digest protein in each .

(i) What is the optimum temperature for the enzyme? (1mark)

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(ii) Account for the time taken to digest egg albumen at 450C. (1mark)
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(b) (i) In which form is the enzyme pepsin secreted. (1mark)

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(ii) Give a reason for your answer in c (i) above. (1mark)

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(c) Name any two products of photolysis. (2marks)

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(d) State the function of the pad of gum in herbivorous feeding. (1mark)

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6.In an experiment to investigate the effect of heat on germination of seeds, 12 bags each containing 60 pea
seeds were placed in a water bath maintained at 850C.
After every two minutes a bag was removed and seeds contained in it planted. The number that germinated
was recorded. The procedure used for pea seeds was repeated for wattle seeds. The results were as shown in
the table below.
Number of seeds that germinated
Time(min) Pea seeds Wattle seeds
0 60 0
2 60 0
4 48 0
6 42 2
8 34 28
10 10 36
12 2 40
14 0 44
16 0 46
18 0 48
20 0 49
22 0 47
(a) Using a suitable scale and on same axes, draw graphs of number of seeds that germinated against time in
hot water for each plant. (7 marks)

b) (i) At what time would number of seed that germinated for each plant be same. (1mark)
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(ii) How many wattle seeds would have germinated if the 13th bag was available and was removed and seeds
contained in it planted at 24 minutes. (1mark)
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c) Explain why the ability of pea seeds to germinate declined with time of exposure to heat. (2marks)
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d) Explain why the ability of the wattle seeds to germinate improved with time of exposure to heat. (2 marks)
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e) Account for the shape of the graph for the wattle seeds which germinated between 20 – 24 min
(2 marks)
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f) Some of the pea seeds were allowed to germinate and placed in a large airtight flask and left for four days.
(i) Suggest the expected changes in the composition of gases in the flask on the fifth day. (2marks)
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(ii) Give reason for your answer in (f) (i) above. (1 mark)
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g) Name two factors other than those investigated in a) above which would affect dormancy. (2marks)

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7(a) Explain how various photosynthetic cells are adapted to their function (10marks)
b) Discuss the role of micro-organisms in nitrogen cycle (10marks)
8.Explain how human skin is adapted to
(a) Protection (10marks)
(b) Thermoregulation (10marks)
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