Which is not an example of a secondary sex characteristics?
Increase in height.
Development of facial hair.
Sperm production.
Maturation of eggs.
Name the hormones that are produced in the ovaries.
Which hormone is responsible for causing the development of secondary sex characteristics in males?
Oestrogen.
Adrenaline.
Testosterone.
Insulin.
Define the term "ovulation".
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A woman starts her first day of menstruation on the 7th of January.
Calculate when she is most likely to ovulate (assume a 28 day menstrual cycle).
Figure 1 shows descriptions of the four different stages of the menstrual cycle.
Figure 1
Draw one line from each description to the correct stage.
Which gamete does testosterone play a role in the development of?
Figure 2 shows the blood hormone concentration of oestrogen and progesterone during a 28 day period.
It also shows the changes that occur in the uterus lining throughout that time.
Figure 2
What changes are associated with a decrease in the concentration of progesterone in the blood?
The uterus lining increases in thickness.
The uterus lining is maintained.
Blood concentration of oestrogen increases.
The uterus lining decreases in thickness.
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An increase in the secretion of Luteinising hormone (LH) triggers ovulation in women.
Figure 3 shows the blood concentration of hormones involved in the menstrual cycle.
Figure 3
Which line represents LH?
Line A.
Line B.
Line C.
Line D.
Figure 4 shows the usage of different forms of contraception in four groups of 100 women. Each group used a different form of contraception.
Figure 4
Explain which is the most effective form of contraception.
Which of the contraceptive methods (shown in Figure 4) most likely contains hormones?
Figure 4
A woman uses 'natural methods' of contraception and avoids sexual intercourse during their most fertile period. Figure 5 represents the woman's 28 day menstrual cycle.
Figure 5
When in the menstrual cycle should she avoid having sexual intercourse, if she does not want to conceive?
Days 1 - 4.
Days 7 - 10.
Days 13 - 16.
Days 20- 23.
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Some people who have already had children often consider more permanent methods of contraception.
Which method of contraception is usually permanent?
Condom.
Sterilisation.
Intra-uterine device.
Contraceptive implant.
Some women struggle to get pregnant and are often treated with hormones to stimulate ovulation.
Which two hormones can be given to women to increase the chance of ovulation?
FSH and LH
Oestrogen and progesterone.
LH and Progesterone
FSH and Oestrogen
A number of women who undergo hormone treatment for infertility become pregnant with twins or triplets.
Suggest why this may occur.
In vitro fertilisation (IVF) can be used to help couples to have children. The IVF procedure involves the following events, as set out in Table 1.
Table 1
| Event | Description |
| A | The fertilised eggs develop into embryos |
| B | FSH and LH are used to stimulate the maturation of several eggs |
| C | One or two embryos are inserted into the mother's uterus |
| D | Eggs are collected from the mother and fertilised with sperm from the father |
Complete the table below to reorder events A - D into chronological order.
| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th |
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Adrenaline is considered to be the 'fight or flight' hormone as it is released in response to scary situations.
Which gland(s) produces adrenaline?
Name the hormone that regulates metabolism.
Which one of the following statements about the pituitary gland is incorrect?
It reduces the level of thyroxine by metabolising it.
It is involved in a negative feedback loop.
It releases Thyroid Stimulating hormone (TSH).
It inhibits the secretion of TSH when thyroxine levels are high.
Describe what happens to heart rate in response to adrenaline.
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During puberty reproductive hormones cause secondary sex characteristics to develop.
In girls, the menstrual cycle also begins.
A number of hormones involved in the menstrual cycle are produced by the pituitary gland in the brain.
Name and describe how these hormones interact to control the release of an egg during the menstrual cycle.
What is meant by the term 'contraception'?
There are two main types of oral contraceptive that women can take.
The combined pill has a higher success rate in preventing pregnancy than the mini-pill.
Suggest an explanation as to why.
On average, sperm production in males begins at around 12 years old.
Explain what initiates sperm production.
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There are many ways of preventing pregnancy.
Figure 1 shows an intra-uterine contraceptive device (IUCD) inside a uterus.
Figure 1
The IUCD device contains a hormone which is released at regular intervals and diffuses throughout the uterus. This hormone stops the lining of the uterus from thickening, and leads to a thick layer of mucus building up in the cervix. The IUCD can last for up to five years before it needs to be replaced.
Alternatively, a woman can take a contraceptive pill that contains the same hormone.
For every 500 women that take the contraceptive pill, about 5 become pregnant, whereas in comparison for every 500 women that have an IUD, only 1 on average will fall pregnant.
Using the information above as well as your own knowledge and understanding, evaluate the use of these two types of contraceptive.
Remember to include a conclusion in your evaluation.
Another method of contraception aside from those detailed in part (a) are barrier methods.
Suggest one reason why may barrier methods be considered a better option for contraception over the IUCD or contraceptive pill.
Explain how the menstrual cycle is controlled by hormones and negative feedback.
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The graph in Figure 1 shows how infertility and the likelihood of a woman falling pregnant change with age.
Figure 1
In 1975 the average age for a woman from the UK to have her first child was 26.4 years.
In 2019, the average age had risen to 30.2 years.
Use information from the graph to answer the question.
Discuss the impact of the increase in the average age of women having their first child.
A 42 year old woman wants to have a child with her partner but they have been unable to fall pregnant naturally.
Describe how modern reproductive technology can be used to treat infertility.
Explain how treating fertility issues with hormones can result in multiple births.
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Oestrogen and testosterone are two important hormones in the human body.
Explain why they are classified as hormones.
Thyroxine is synthesised in and secreted by the thyroid gland.
Outline how negative feedback controls thyroxine levels.
Adrenaline is known as the ‘flight or fight’ hormone.
Explain why.
Hypothyroidism is caused by an underactive thyroid gland.
Suggest what would happen in the body of a person with hypothyroidism.
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The menstrual cycle is regulated through the action of several hormones.
Figure 1 shows the changes in hormones oestrogen and progesterone over the 28 day period of the menstrual cycle. It also shows the changes that occur in the uterus lining throughout that time.
Figure 1
Explain the reasons for the decrease in the thickness of the uterus lining shown between days 0 and 3 in Figure 1.
Describe and explain the relationship between the concentration of oestrogen in the blood and the thickness of the uterus lining between days 7 and 14.
Figure 1 shows that progesterone levels remain high between days 14 and 27 of the cycle and then start to decrease around day 28. However, if an egg is fertilised, the concentration of progesterone does not follow the pattern shown in Figure 1.
Use your knowledge of hormones in human reproduction to describe how the concentration of progesterone would be affected by fertilisation and explain why it is affected in this way.
Reproductive hormones are responsible for the start of puberty.
Describe the changes that result from the onset of puberty.
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Figure 1 shows a comparison of average height between males and females from birth to adulthood.
Figure 1
Explain why height should not be considered a secondary sex characteristic.
Hypopituitarism is a rare disorder in which the pituitary gland fails to produce sufficient quantities of one or more hormones. Girls who suffer from this rare condition usually experience delayed puberty, as the pituitary gland does not produce enough of two key hormones involved in puberty.
Suggest a mechanism by which hypopituitarism causes delayed puberty in girls.
Gynaecomastia is a common condition that causes boys' and mens' breasts to swell and become larger than normal.
Figure 2 shows an excerpt from a report in the 'Endocrinology Monthly' journal, of an unusual case of gynaecomastia.
Figure 2
Explain why the patient may have gynaecomastia.
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The following hormones are involved in the menstrual cycle:
Draw an annotated graph showing how the levels of the above hormones change throughout the menstrual cycle.
Suggest how oestrogen functions in both positive and negative feedback within the menstrual cycle.
Figure 3 shows changes in the thickening of the uterus wall lining in two women X and Y.
Figure 3
Suggest why the thickness of the uterus wall lining is different between the two women.
Explain how the levels of LH and progesterone will differ between the women X and Y during the next calendar month (assume a normal menstrual cycle for woman Y).
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Figure 4 shows the usage of different forms of contraception in four groups of 100 women.
Each group used a different form of contraception.
Figure 4
Evaluate the effectiveness of the different methods of contraception shown in Figure 4.
Explain which method(s) of contraception would help to prevent the spread of sexually transmitted diseases.
Explain how contraceptive pills can be used to reduce fertility.
Intra-Uterine Devices (IUDs) are devices that are placed into the uterus to help prevent pregnancy.
There are two main types, plastic IUDs that release progesterone and copper IUDs. Figure 5 shows how many days menstrual bleeding occurs post implantation with either copper or progesterone-containing IUDs.
Figure 5
Explain why there are differences in the number of days of menstrual bleeding between the two devices.
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The hormones FSH and LH are used in IVF.
Explain the use of FSH and LH in IVF.
2 marksA private fertility clinic undertook an 'in house' scientific study to investigate the success of IVF treatment in their patients. Two cohorts of women were included in the study, one group were under 40 years of age and the other group was over 40 years of age. The results of the study are shown in Table 1
Table 1
| < 40 years of age | > 40 years of age | Total | |
| Successful pregnancy | 82 | 4 | 86 |
| Failed pregnancy | 58 | 21 | 79 |
Calculate the percentage chance that a 45 year old woman would have successful IVF treatment.
6 marksBased on their study (described in part b), the fertility clinic published an advert claiming that their clinic was more successful than the UK national average. Figure 6 shows the information published.
Figure 6
Evaluate the validity of their claim (use the data in Table 1 to support your answer).
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Adrenaline is commonly known as the 'fight or flight' hormone, but adrenaline is also released in many other situations such as undertaking dangerous activities or running a race.
Explain why the release of adrenaline can be advantageous to a competitive athlete.
Suggest why adrenaline is useful in trying to restore heart function.
Explain the homeostatic mechanisms involved in the control of metabolic rate.
The hormone thyroxine contains iodine within its chemical structure.
Iodine is an essential nutrient in the diet as it cannot be synthesised by the human body.
Suggest the effect of a deficiency of dietary iodine on the human body.
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