Biological termModerate1 mark
1(a)
Name the following:
The number of chromosomes present in a nerve cell of a human being.
Topic: Chromosomes in a nerve cell
Previous-year question practice database
Answer
Exam answer
46 (or 23 pairs).
Explanation
A NERVE CELL is a BODY (somatic) cell, and every body cell in a human being is DIPLOID with 46 chromosomes — 44 autosomes and 2 sex chromosomes.
THE TRAP is that a neuron does not divide, which tempts students to think it is somehow special. It is not: it carries the full chromosome complement like any other body cell.
Only the GAMETES are HAPLOID, with 23 chromosomes, because meiosis halves the number so that fertilisation restores 46.
The marking scheme accepts either "46" or "23 pairs", but read the question: it asks for the NUMBER of chromosomes, so 46 is the direct answer.
More from Structure of Chromosomes, Cell Cycle and Cell Division
A sequence of DNA has 300 nitrogenous base pairs, of which 75 are Guanine. What is the number of Thymine in this sequence?2026Which is the resting but metabolically active stage of the cell cycle?2026Mention the number of Autosomes and Allosomes in a human body cell.2026Draw a neat, labelled diagram of an animal cell showing the Prophase stage of Mitosis with four chromosomes.2026Differentiate between Mitosis in a plant cell and an animal cell based on Cytokinesis.2026A phase of cell division where the spindle fibres disappear is:2025