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Question 1
Incorrect
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A 42-year old woman presents to the doctor with jaundice. Her investigations show conjugated hyperbilirubinemia, raised urine bilirubin levels and low urine urobilinogen levels. What is the likely cause of her jaundice?
Your Answer: Haemolytic anaemia
Correct Answer: Blockage of the common bile duct
Explanation:The description of the patient here fits the diagnosis of obstructive jaundice or cholestasis, which results in conjugated hyperbilirubinemia. Cholestasis occurs due to impairment of bile flow, which can be anywhere from the liver cell canaliculus to the ampulla of Vater. Causes can be divided into intrahepatic and extrahepatic.
– Intrahepatic causes include hepatitis, drug toxicity, alcoholic liver disease, primary biliary cirrhosis, cholestasis of pregnancy and metastatic cancer.
– Extrahepatic causes include common duct stone, pancreatic cancer, benign stricture of the common duct, ductal carcinoma, pancreatitis and sclerosing cholangitis.
There is absence of bile constituents in the intestine, which causes spillage in the systemic circulation. Symptoms include pale stools, dark urine, pruritus, malabsorption leading to steatorrhea and deficiency of fat-soluble vitamins. Chronic cases can result in osteoporosis or osteomalacia due to vitamin D deficiency and Ca2+ malabsorption. Cholesterol and phospholipid retention produces hyperlipidaemia despite fat malabsorption (although increased liver synthesis and decreased plasma esterification of cholesterol also contribute); triglyceride levels are largely unaffected. The lipids circulate as a unique, low-density lipoprotein called lipoprotein X.
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This question is part of the following fields:
- Gastroenterology
- Physiology
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Question 2
Incorrect
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In a cardiac cycle, what event does the opening of the atrioventricular (AV) valves coincide with?
Your Answer: Beginning of systole
Correct Answer: Beginning of diastole
Explanation:Cardiac diastole refers to the time period when the heart is relaxed after contraction and is preparing to refill with blood. Both ventricular and atrial diastole are together known as complete cardiac diastole. At its beginning, the ventricles relax, causing a drop in the ventricular pressure. As soon as the left ventricular pressure drops below that in left atrium, the mitral valve opens and there is ventricular filling of blood. Similarly, the tricuspid valve opens filling the right atrium.
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This question is part of the following fields:
- Cardiovascular
- Physiology
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Question 3
Correct
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Which antibiotic acts by inhibiting protein synthesis?
Your Answer: Erythromycin
Explanation:Penicillins and cephalosporins (e.g. cefuroxime, cefotaxime, ceftriaxone) inhibit bacterial cell wall synthesis through the inhibition of peptidoglycan cross-linking.
Macrolides (e.g. erythromycin), tetracyclines, aminoglycosides and chloramphenicol act by interfering with bacterial protein synthesis.
Sulphonamides (e.g. trimethoprim, co-trimoxazole) work by inhibiting the synthesis of nucleic acid
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This question is part of the following fields:
- Pharmacology; Microbiology
- Physiology
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Question 4
Correct
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A 17-year-old boy, who had developed shortness of breath and a loss of appetite over the last month, was referred to a haematologist because he presented with easy bruising and petechiae. His prothrombin time, platelet count, partial thromboplastin and bleeding time were all normal. Which of the following would explain the presence of the petechiae and easy bruising tendency?
Your Answer: Scurvy
Explanation:Scurvy is a condition caused by a dietary deficiency of vitamin C, also known as ascorbic acid. Humans are unable to synthesize vitamin C, therefore the quantity of it that the body needs has to come from the diet. The presence of an adequate quantity of vitamin C is required for normal collagen synthesis. In scurvy bleeding tendency is due to capillary fragility and not coagulation defects, therefore blood tests are normal.
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This question is part of the following fields:
- Haematology
- Pathology
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Question 5
Correct
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A patient who has used NSAIDS for many years presents to the A&E with symptoms of acute haemorrhagic shock. An emergency endoscopy is done that shows that a duodenal ulcer has perforated the posterior wall of the first part of the duodenum. Which artery is most likely to be the cause of the haemorrhage?
Your Answer: Gastroduodenal
Explanation:The gastroduodenal artery is a branch of the hepatic artery and descends near the pylorus between the first part of the duodenum and the neck of the pancreas to divide at the lower border of the duodenum into the right gastroepiploic and pancreaticoduodenal arteries. Before it divides, it gives off a few branches to the pyloric end of the stomach and to the pancreas. The artery that is most likely involved in this situation is the gastroduodenal artery since it is posterior to the first part of the duodenum.
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This question is part of the following fields:
- Abdomen
- Anatomy
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Question 6
Correct
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Below which level of the spinal cord will the inferior gluteal nerve be unaffected?
Your Answer: S3
Explanation:The inferior gluteal nerve arises from the dorsal divisions of the fifth lumbar and first and second sacral nerves. According to this fact any lesion at or below the S3 will not affect the inferior gluteal nerve.
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This question is part of the following fields:
- Anatomy
- Lower Limb
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Question 7
Incorrect
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The following structures DO NOT lie between the layers of the mesosalpinx except for the?
Your Answer: Round ligament of the uterus
Correct Answer: Fallopian tube
Explanation:Mesosalpinx is the portion of the broad ligament that stretches from the fallopian tube to the ovary and contains the uterine tubes between it’s layers.
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This question is part of the following fields:
- Anatomy
- Pelvis
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Question 8
Incorrect
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A computer tomography guided needle biopsy is done on a patient with a cystic swelling in the left chest. The radiologist inserted the biopsy needle into the 9th intercostal space along the mid axillary line to aspirate the swelling and obtain tissue for histological diagnosis. In which space is the swelling most likely to be?
Your Answer: Cardiac notch
Correct Answer: Costodiaphragmatic recess
Explanation:The costodiaphragmatic recess is the lowest point of the pleural sac where the costal pleura becomes the diaphragmatic pleura. At the midclavicular line, this is found between ribs 6 and 8; at the paravertebral lines, between ribs 10 and 12 and between ribs 8 and 10 at the midaxillary line.
The cardiac notch: is an indentation of the heart on the left lung, located on the anterior surface of the lung.
Cupola: part of the parietal pleura that extends above the first rib.
Oblique pericardial sinus: part of the pericardial sac located posterior to the heart behind the left atrium.
Costomediastinal recess: a reflection of the pleura from the costal surface to the mediastinal surface, is on the anterior surface of the chest.
The inferior mediastinum: is the space in the chest occupied by the heart.
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This question is part of the following fields:
- Anatomy
- Thorax
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Question 9
Incorrect
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An 26-year-old man sought admission due to persistent non-bloody diarrhoea. The patient is HIV-positive. Examination of stool sample showed numerous acid-fast cysts. Which of the following organism is the most likely cause of diarrhoea?
Your Answer: Toxoplasma gondii
Correct Answer: Cryptosporidium parvum
Explanation:Cryptosporidium parvum is one of several species that causes cryptosporidiosis, a parasitic disease of the mammalian intestinal tract. Primary symptoms of C. parvum infection are acute, watery, and non-bloody diarrhoea. C. parvum infection is of particular concern in immunocompromised patients, where diarrhoea can reach 10–15 l per day.
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This question is part of the following fields:
- Microbiology
- Pathology
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Question 10
Correct
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A lad involved in a road traffic accident is rushed to casualty where physical examination reveals that he has limited extension of his right humerus. Which of the following nerves is most likely to have been injured?
Your Answer: Thoracodorsal nerve
Explanation:Extension of the humerus is a function of the latissimus dorsi. This muscle is supplied by the thoracodorsal nerve which is a branch of the posterior cord of the plexus whose fibres are derived from cranial nerves V, VI and VII.
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This question is part of the following fields:
- Anatomy
- Upper Limb
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Question 11
Correct
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Which of the following muscles are involved in abduction of the wrist?
Your Answer: Extensor carpi radialis brevis and flexor carpi radialis
Explanation:The muscle of the wrist that cause abduction of the wrist otherwise also know as radial flexion of the wrist are the following:
-Abductor Pollicis Longus
-Flexor Carpi Radialis
-Extensor Carpi Radialis Longus
-Extensor Carpi Radialis Brevis
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This question is part of the following fields:
- Anatomy
- Upper Limb
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Question 12
Incorrect
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What is the role of ICAM-1 and VCAM-1 in the inflammatory process?
Your Answer: Leukocyte transmigration
Correct Answer: Leukocyte adhesion
Explanation:Steps involved in leukocyte arrival and function include:
1. margination: cells migrate from the centre to the periphery of the vessel.
2. rolling: selectins are upregulated on the vessel walls.
3. adhesion: upregulation of the adhesion molecules ICAM and VCAM on the endothelium interact with integrins on the leukocytes. Interaction of these results in adhesion.
4. diapedesis and chemotaxis: diapedesis is the transmigration of the leukocyte across the endothelium of the capillary and towards a chemotactic product.
5. phagocytosis: engulfing the offending substance/cell.
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This question is part of the following fields:
- Inflammation & Immunology
- Pathology
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Question 13
Correct
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During hysterectomy, the ureter is most likely to be ligated when a surgeon is clamping the?
Your Answer: Uterine arteries
Explanation:The ureter forms the posterior boundary of a shallow depression which lodges the ovary and then runs medially and forward on the lateral aspect of the uterine cervix and upper part of the vagina to reach the fundus of the bladder. It is also situated about 2cm from the side of the cervix of the uterus. The relationship of the ureters and uterine arteries is of clinical significance because the arteries are at risk of iatrogenic injury during hysterectomy.
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This question is part of the following fields:
- Anatomy
- Pelvis
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Question 14
Correct
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Multiple cells were labelled using a fluorescent dye that doesn’t cross the cell membrane. One cell in the middle was bleached with a light that destroys the dye, but the cell soon recovers its stain. The presence of which structures best explains this?
Your Answer: Gap junctions
Explanation:Gap junctions are attachments between cells that permit intercellular communication e.g. they permit current flow and electrical coupling between myocardial cells. They allow direct electrical transmission among cells and also permit certain substance to pass through as well. They are either homotypic, formed by two identical hemichannels or heterotypic, formed by different hemichannels.
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This question is part of the following fields:
- General
- Physiology
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Question 15
Incorrect
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A patient who following 20 years of working in the asbestos industry develops malignant mesothelioma and is scheduled for pleuropneumonectomy to remove the entire pleura and lung on the affected side. Which layer would provide a natural cleavage plane for surgical separation of the costal pleura from the thoracic wall?
Your Answer: Parietal pleura
Correct Answer: Endothoracic fascia
Explanation:The endothoracic fascia is connective tissue that is between the costal parietal pleura and the inner aspect of the chest wall. Removing this layer of connective tissue would make it easy to separate the costal pleura from the thoracic wall.
Deep fascia: is not found around the lungs. It is a layer of connective tissue that invests a muscle or a group of muscles.
Parietal pleura: part of the pleura that lines the inner surface of the chest/thoracic cavity.
Visceral pleura: is the serous membrane that lines the surface of the lungs.
Transversus thoracis muscle fascia is associated only with the muscle transversus thoracis.
Peritracheal fascia: a layer of connective tissue that invests the trachea. It is not associated with the thoracic wall or the costal pleura.
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This question is part of the following fields:
- Anatomy
- Thorax
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Question 16
Incorrect
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Biopsy of a neoplastic mass was performed. Histologic examination of the specimen showed spindle shaped cells with high nuclear/cytoplasm ratio on immunohisto chemical staining. These pleomorphic cells were vimentin positive, cytokeratin negative and cd45 negative. This type of neoplasm is most commonly found in which patient?
Your Answer: A 45-year-old woman with massive ascites and peritoneal metastases
Correct Answer: A 15-year-old boy with a mass in the left femur and lung metastases
Explanation:A histology report that describes spindle shaped cells which are vimentin positive suggests osteosarcoma and hematogenous spread to the lungs.
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This question is part of the following fields:
- Neoplasia; Orthopaedics
- Pathology
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Question 17
Incorrect
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A 68-year-old woman complains of headaches, dizziness, and memory loss. About a month ago, she fell from a staircase but only suffered mild head trauma. What is the most likely diagnosis in this case?
Your Answer: Subarachnoid haemorrhage
Correct Answer: Chronic subdural haematoma
Explanation:A quarter to a half of patients with chronic subdural haematoma have no identifiable history of head trauma. If a patient does have a history of head trauma, it usually is mild. The average time between head trauma and chronic subdural haematoma diagnosis is 4–5 weeks. Symptoms include decreased level of consciousness, balance problems, cognitive dysfunction and memory loss, motor deficit (e.g. hemiparesis), headache or aphasia. Some patients present acutely. They usually result from tears in bridging veins which cross the subdural space, and may cause an increase in intracranial pressure (ICP).
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This question is part of the following fields:
- Neurology
- Pathology
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Question 18
Incorrect
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A histological examination of a lump showed an abnormal amount and arrangement of normal tissue in an otherwise normal area. This condition is known as?
Your Answer: Mixed tumour
Correct Answer: Hamartoma
Explanation:A hamartoma is a condition best described as tissue normally present in an area arranged haphazardly in an disorganized, abnormal fashion. They are never malignant and do not metastasis.
All the neoplastic, cancerous lesions comprise of a mixture of different cells that are not normal to that area.
Metaplasia is a change in the type of the epithelium.
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This question is part of the following fields:
- Cell Injury & Wound Healing
- Pathology
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Question 19
Incorrect
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Which of the following organs is an ectoderm derivative?
Your Answer: Adrenal cortex
Correct Answer: Adrenal medulla
Explanation:Ectoderm derivatives include the adrenal medulla, posterior pituitary, the epidermis of the skin, nails, hair, sweat glands, mammary glands, sebaceous glands, the central nervous system, the peripheral nervous system, the retina and lens of eye, the pupillary muscle of the iris, melanocytes, Schwann cells and odontoblasts.
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This question is part of the following fields:
- Anatomy
- Embryology
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Question 20
Incorrect
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Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep is typically associated with:
Your Answer: Hypertonia
Correct Answer: Penile erections
Explanation:Normal sleep comprises of alternate cycles between slow-wave sleep (non-REM sleep) and REM sleep. REM sleep is characterized by increased metabolic brain activity and EEG desynchronization. Somnambulism (sleepwalking), enuresis (bedwetting) and night terrors all occur during slow-wave sleep or during arousal from slow-wave sleep. In comparison, REM sleep is characterized by hypotonia of major muscle groups (excluding ocular muscles), dreams, nightmares and penile erection.
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This question is part of the following fields:
- Neurology
- Physiology
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Question 21
Incorrect
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Which nuclei of the posterior grey column of the spinal cord are likely affected in a patient who has lost the sensation of pain and temperature?
Your Answer: Posteromarginal nucleus
Correct Answer: Substantia gelatinosa
Explanation:Substantia gelatinosa is one of the nuclei in the posterior grey column along side other posterior grey column nuclei like the nucleus dorsalis, nucleus proprius, and posteromarginal nucleus. These nuclei are a collection of cells in the posterior grey area found in throughout the spinal cord. The substantia gelatinosa receives direct input from the dorsal nerve roots (sensory), especially from thermoreceptors and nociceptors (receptors for temperature and pain).
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This question is part of the following fields:
- Anatomy
- Neurology
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Question 22
Correct
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Glucose is not secreted by the kidneys, and is filtered without a limit. What is the transport maximum for glucose?
Your Answer: 300 mg/dl
Explanation:Transport maximum (or Tm) refers to the point at which increases in concentration do not result in an increase in movement of a substance across a membrane. Glucose is not secreted, thus excretion = filtration – reabsorption. Both filtration and reabsorption are directly proportional to the concentration of glucose in the plasma. However, reabsorption has a transport maximum of about 300 mg/dl in healthy nephrons, while filtration has effectively no limit (within reasonable physiological ranges). So, if the concentration rises above 300 mg/dl, the body cannot retain all the glucose, leading to glucosuria. Glucosuria is nearly always caused by elevated blood glucose levels, most commonly due to untreated diabetes mellitus.
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This question is part of the following fields:
- Physiology
- Renal
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Question 23
Incorrect
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A histology report of a cervical biopsy taken from a patient with tuberculosis revealed the presence of epithelioid cells. What are these cells formed from?
Your Answer: Lymphocytes
Correct Answer: Macrophages
Explanation:Granulomas formed in tuberculosis are called tubercles and are made up polynuclear phagocytes, Langhans cells and epithelioid cells. Macrophages when enlarged, consist of abundant cytoplasm and have a tendency of arranging themselves very closely to each other representing epithelial cells. These enlarged macrophages are therefore termed as epithelioid cells.
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This question is part of the following fields:
- Cell Injury & Wound Healing
- Pathology
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Question 24
Incorrect
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Lack of findings in the bladder but presence of atypical epithelial cells in urinalysis is most often associated with which of the following conditions?
Your Answer: Squamous cell carcinoma of penis
Correct Answer: Transitional cell carcinoma of renal pelvis
Explanation:The presence of atypical cells in urinalysis without findings in the bladder suggests a lesion located higher up, most probably in ureters or renal pelvis. Transitional cell cancer of the renal pelvis is a disease in which malignant cells form in the renal pelvis and is characterised by the presence of abnormal cells in urine cytology.
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This question is part of the following fields:
- Pathology
- Renal
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Question 25
Correct
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A 50 year old male point was diagnosed with tennis elbow that became worse after he started playing basket ball over the last three months. He was admitted to the orthopaedic ward to have elbow braces fitted. What type of synovial joint is the elbow joint?
Your Answer: Hinge
Explanation:The elbow joint is one of the many synovial joints in the body. This joint is an example of the hinge joint as the humerus is received into the semilunar notch of the ulna and the capitulum of the humerus articulates with the fovea on the head of the radius, together acting as a hinge in one plane.
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This question is part of the following fields:
- Anatomy
- Upper Limb
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Question 26
Incorrect
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The presence of oval fat bodies in the urine is most likely to be seen in which of the following conditions?
Your Answer: Nephritic syndrome
Correct Answer: Nephrotic syndrome
Explanation:Nephrotic syndrome is associated with the presence of oval fat bodies on urinalysis due to increased proteinuria and lipiduria.
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This question is part of the following fields:
- Pathology
- Renal
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Question 27
Correct
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A 76-year-old woman is diagnosed with diabetes mellitus after a urine test revealed she has glucosuria. Glucosuria may occur due to inadequate glucose reabsorption at:
Your Answer: Proximal convoluted tubule
Explanation:Glucose is reabsorbed almost 100% via sodium–glucose transport proteins (apical) and GLUT (basolateral) in the proximal convoluted tubule. Glycosuria or glucosuria is a condition of osmotic diuresis typical in those suffering from diabetes mellitus. Due to a lack of insulin, plasma glucose levels are above normal. This leads to saturation of receptors in the kidneys and glycosuria usually at plasma glucose levels above 11 mmol/l. Rarely, glycosuria is due to an intrinsic problem with glucose reabsorption within the kidneys (such as Fanconi syndrome), producing a condition termed renal glycosuria.
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This question is part of the following fields:
- Physiology
- Renal
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Question 28
Incorrect
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Perforin are present in the granules of which cell?
Your Answer: Kupffer cell
Correct Answer: Natural killer cell
Explanation:Perforins are characteristically found In the granules of CD8+ T cells and natural killer cells. They are cytolytic proteins that insert into the target plasma membrane forming a hole and resulting in lysis. They along with granzyme B induce apoptosis in the target cell.
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This question is part of the following fields:
- Inflammation & Immunology
- Pathology
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Question 29
Correct
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The proximal tubule is the portion of the ductal system of the nephron of the kidney which leads from Bowman's capsule to the loop of Henle. Which of the following is most likely to be seen in a sample of fluid leaving the proximal tubule?
Your Answer: It will have no amino acids
Explanation:The proximal tubule is the portion of the duct system of the nephron leading from Bowman’s capsule to the loop of Henlé. The most distinctive characteristic of the proximal tubule is its brush border (or ‘striated border’). The luminal surface of the epithelial cells of this segment of the nephron is covered with densely packed microvilli forming a border which greatly increases the luminal surface area of the cells, presumably facilitating their reabsorptive function. Glucose, amino acids, inorganic phosphate, and some other solutes are100% reabsorbed via secondary active transport through co-transporters driven by the sodium gradient out of the nephron.
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This question is part of the following fields:
- Physiology
- Renal
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Question 30
Correct
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The stomach is an organ that is divided into several important anatomical parts. These parts of the stomach have varied arterial blood supply that ensure that the whole organ receive oxygenated blood. Which of the following arteries if ligated, will not render any portion of the stomach ischaemic?
Your Answer: Superior mesenteric
Explanation:The blood supply to the stomach is through the following arteries:
– The superior mesenteric artery supplies blood to the lower part of the duodenum, pancreas and two-thirds of the transverse colon. Thus ligation of the superior mesenteric artery would not affect the stomach.
– The right and the left gastroepiploic arteries supply the greater curvature of the stomach – along its edges.
– The short gastric artery supplies blood to the upper portion of the of the greater curvature and the fundus of the stomach.
– The gastroduodenal artery supplies blood to the distal part of the stomach (the pyloric sphincter) and the proximal end of the duodenum.
– The left gastroepiploic and the short gastric are branches of the splenic artery and therefore ligation of the splenic artery would directly affect the stomach.
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This question is part of the following fields:
- Abdomen
- Anatomy
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SESSION STATS - PERFORMANCE PER SPECIALTY
