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NEET BotanyUpdated 19 Oct 2026

Cell: The Unit of Life: NEET PYQs and weightage

Cell: The Unit of Life carries 8.1 of 100 Botany marks in NEET by past-paper share: 64 of the 793 tagged NEET Botany PYQs in the ViJEEta bank (NEET 2013–2026). It ranks 2 of 21 Botany chapters.

Removed from NEET in this chapter: Transport across membrane, Cell junctions, Cell Biology techniques and microscopy. Still in NCERT and school exams, not asked in NEET now.
Take the 25-question Cell: The Unit of Life testKey facts ↓All NEET Botany chapters
8.1/100 Weight in Botany
5 of 5 Exam importance (5/5, by past-paper share)
64 NEET PYQs
524 Practice questions
445 With measured difficulty

How the weight is computed: this chapter's tagged NEET PYQs divided by all tagged NEET Botany PYQs in the bank (64 of 793), times 100, with repeated questions counted once. The bank does not store the year of each NEET question, so none is printed. Computed from the bank at build time. Updated 19 Oct 2026.

Cell: The Unit of Life: key facts for NEET

16 facts the paper keeps asking, each with how it is asked. Copy it onto one page of your notebook: that page is this chapter's handbook.

  1. Cell theory

    Schleiden () and Schwann () gave cell theory; Virchow () added "Omnis cellula-e cellula", cells arise from pre-existing cells.

    Asked as: Match the scientist to the contribution, or "who modified cell theory?"

  2. First live cell and the nucleus

    Anton von Leeuwenhoek first saw and described a live cell; Robert Brown later discovered the nucleus.

    Asked as: Assertion-reason or "who discovered the nucleus?"

  3. Cell sizes

    Smallest cells are mycoplasmas (), bacteria are , the largest isolated single cell is the egg of an ostrich, human RBC is about .

    Asked as: Arrange cells by size, or pick the correct size pair.

  4. Mesosome

    Mesosome is an infolding of the plasma membrane; it helps in cell wall formation, DNA replication and distribution, respiration, secretion and increasing surface area.

    Asked as: "Which is NOT a function of mesosome?"

  5. Prokaryotic inclusion bodies

    Prokaryotic inclusion bodies (phosphate, cyanophycean, glycogen granules) are not membrane bound; gas vacuoles occur in blue-green, purple and green photosynthetic bacteria.

    Asked as: Odd one out among inclusion bodies.

  6. Prokaryotic ribosomes

    Prokaryotic ribosomes are ; several ribosomes on one mRNA form a polysome.

    Asked as: Subunit match for vs , or "what is a polysome?"

  7. Fluid mosaic model

    Fluid mosaic model was proposed by Singer and Nicolson (); the human RBC membrane has about protein and lipids.

    Asked as: Who gave the model, or the protein-to-lipid ratio of the RBC membrane.

  8. Middle lamella and plasmodesmata

    The middle lamella is mainly calcium pectate and holds neighbouring plant cells together; plasmodesmata connect their cytoplasm.

    Asked as: "Middle lamella is made of?"

  9. SER and RER

    SER is the major site for lipid synthesis, and in animal cells it makes steroidal hormones; RER bears ribosomes and is common in protein-secreting cells.

    Asked as: "Steroid-secreting cells are rich in?"

  10. Golgi apparatus

    Golgi apparatus (Camillo Golgi, ) has a cis (forming) face and a trans (maturing) face; it is the site of glycoprotein and glycolipid formation.

    Asked as: Name the faces, or "glycosylation of lipids occurs in?"

  11. Lysosomes

    Lysosomes contain hydrolytic enzymes (lipases, proteases, carbohydrases) that are active at acidic pH.

    Asked as: "At what pH are lysosomal enzymes active?"

  12. Vacuole

    The vacuole can occupy up to of a plant cell's volume and is bound by the tonoplast; in Amoeba the contractile vacuole does osmoregulation and excretion.

    Asked as: Name the vacuole membrane, or the function of the contractile vacuole.

  13. Mitochondria

    Mitochondria have their own single circular DNA, a few RNA molecules and ribosomes, and they divide by fission.

    Asked as: "Semi-autonomous organelle" statements, true or false.

  14. Eukaryotic ribosomes

    Eukaryotic ribosomes are and were first observed by George Palade () under the electron microscope.

    Asked as: Discoverer match, or subunit pair.

  15. Cilia, flagella and centrioles

    Cilia and flagella have a axoneme; centrioles have a cartwheel of peripheral triplet fibrils and form basal bodies and spindle fibres.

    Asked as: Doublet vs triplet, or "which structure has triplets?"

  16. Nucleolus and chromosome types

    The nucleolus is not membrane bound and is the site for active rRNA synthesis; chromosomes are classed by centromere position as metacentric, sub-metacentric, acrocentric or telocentric.

    Asked as: "Nucleolus is the site of?" or identify the chromosome type from a figure.

Trap

S values do not add. 50S + 30S = 70S, not 80S, and 60S + 40S = 80S, not 100S. Svedberg units measure the sedimentation rate, not mass.

How does NEET ask Cell: The Unit of Life?

8 real previous-year questions from this chapter, as printed in the paper, each with its worked solution. Answer the first one here with no sign-in.

Q1BotanyNEET UG PYQEukaryotic Cells (Organelles)
Try right here · No sign-in
Read the following statements and choose the set of correct statements: (a) Euchromatin is loosely packed chromatin (b) Heterochromatin is transcriptionally active (c) Histone octamer is wrapped by negatively charged DNA in nucleosome (d) Histones are rich in lysine and arginine. (e) A typical nucleosome contains 400 bp of DNA helix Choose the correct answer from the options given below:
Answer key (B) & worked solution

Correct answer: Option B

Heterochromatin are regions of DNA that are tightly packed with histone proteins and are transcriptionally inactive, contrary to euchromatin. A nucleosome typically contains 200 bp of DNA helix.
Q2BotanyNEET UG PYQEukaryotic Cells (Organelles)
Match list I with list II. List IList IIA. NucleolusI. Site of formation of glycolipidB. CentrioleII. Organisation like the cartwheelC. LeucoplastsIII. Site for active ribosomal RNA synthesisD. Golgi apparatusIV. For storing nutrients Choose the correct answer from the options given below.
AA-II, B-III, C-I, D-IV
BA-III, B-IV, C-II, D-I
CA-I, B-II, C-III, D-IV
DA-III, B-II, C-IV, D-I
Answer key (D) & worked solution

Correct answer: Option D

- nucleolus is a site for active ribosomal RNA synthesis. - The centrioles in a centrosome lie perpendicular to each other in which each has an organisation like the cartwheel. - The leucoplasts are the colourless plastids of varied shapes and sizes with stored nutrients - Golgi apparatus is the important site of formation of glycoproteins and glycolipids.
Q3BotanyNEET UG PYQEukaryotic Cells (Organelles)
Which of the following is an incorrect statement?
AThe perinuclear space forms a barrier between the materials present inside the nucleus and that of the cytoplasm
BNuclear pores act as passages for proteins and RNA molecules in both directions between nucleus and cytoplasm
CMature sieve tube elements possess a conspicuous nucleus and usual cytoplasmic organelles
DMicrobodies are present both in plant and animal cells
Answer key (C) & worked solution

Correct answer: Option C

The nuclear envelope consists of two lipid bilayer membranes: an inner nuclear membrane and an outer nuclear membrane. The space between the membranes is called the perinuclear space, which forms a barrier between the materials present inside the nucleus and that of the cytoplasm.At a number of places the nuclear envelope is interrupted by minute pores, which are formed by the fusion of its two membranes. These nuclear pores are the passages through which movement of RNA and protein molecules takes place in both directions between the nucleus and the cytoplasm.

Mature sieve tube elements are deep , tubular and do not contain nucleus in the cells with no secondary wall and terminal sieve plate. They lack nucleus at the maturity so that they are associated with companion cells for support.

Many membrane bound minute vesicles called microbodies that contain various enzymes, are present in both plant and animal cells.
Q4BotanyNEET UG PYQEukaryotic Cells (Organelles)
Which of the following statements regarding mitochondria is incorrect:
AEnzymes of electron transport are embedded in outer membrane
BInner membrane is convoluted with infoldings
CMitochondrial matrix contains single circular DNA molecule and ribosomes
DOuter membrane is permeable to monomers of carbohydrates, fats and proteins
Answer key (A) & worked solution

Correct answer: Option A

In mitochondria, enzymes for electron transport are present in the inner membrane.
Q5BotanyNEET UG PYQEukaryotic Cells (Endomembrane System)
Which of the following are not membrane-bound?
AVacuoles
BRibosomes
CLysosomes
DMesosomes
Answer key (B) & worked solution

Correct answer: Option B

Ribosomes are non-membrane bound organelles found in all cells.
Q6BotanyNEET UG PYQEukaryotic Cells (Endomembrane System)
Which of the following are NOT considered as the part of endomembrane system? A. Mitochondria B. Endoplasmic Reticulum C. Chloroplasts D. Golgi complex E. Peroxisomes Choose the most appropriate answer from the options given below:
AA, C and E only
BA and D only
CA, D and E only
DB and D only
Answer key (A) & worked solution

Correct answer: Option A

The endomembrane system include endoplasmic reticulum (ER), golgi complex, lysosomes and vacuoles. Since the functions of the mitochondria, chloroplast and peroxisomes are not coordinated with the above components, these are not considered as part of the endomembrane system.
Q7BotanyNEET UG PYQEukaryotic Cells (Organelles)
Match the columns and identify the correct option. Column-IColumn-II1. Thylakoids(i) Disc-shaped sacs in Golgi apparatus2. Cristae(ii) Condensed structure of DNA3. Cisternae(iii) Flat membranous sacs in stroma4. Chromatin(iv) Infoldings in mitochondria
A1-iv, 2-iii, 3-i, 4-ii
B1-iii, 2-iv, 3-i, 4-ii
C1-iii, 2-i, 3-iv, 4-ii
D1-iii, 2-iv, 3-ii, 4-i
Answer key (B) & worked solution

Correct answer: Option B

1. Thylakoids are flat membranous sacs in stroma of chloroplasts. 2. Cristae are folds in the inner membrane of mitochondria. 3. Cisternae are disc-shaped sacs in Golgi apparatus. 4. Chromatin is a condensed structure of DNA.
Q8BotanyNEET UG PYQProkaryotic Cells
Which structures perform the function of mitochondria in bacteria?
ARibosomes
BCell wall
CMesosomes
DNucleoid
Answer key (C) & worked solution

Correct answer: Option C

Mesosomes are the infolding of the bacterial cell membrane.These structures are thought to be analogous to the eukaryotic mitochondria. As mitochondria are the site of respiration, these mesosomes carry out respiration in the bacteria.

Which topics in Cell: The Unit of Life carry the most questions?

All 9 topics, by tagged PYQs, then practice questions. Counted from the bank. Updated 19 Oct 2026.

TopicPYQsPractice questions
Eukaryotic Cells (Organelles)31197
Eukaryotic Cells (Endomembrane System)1779
Prokaryotic Cells760
Eukaryotic Cells456
Cell junctionsNot in NEET now38
Introduction to Cells160
Transport across membraneNot in NEET now134
Miscellaneous Examples026
Cell Biology techniques and microscopyNot in NEET now04

Why does Cell: The Unit of Life show "–" until you answer 3 questions?

Unknown is not zero. Until you answer at least 3 graded questions in Cell: The Unit of Life, ViJEEta shows – instead of a zero or a 50% default. Book exercises can raise chapter mastery up to 0.60, adaptive practice up to 0.75, and only a timed chapter test or mock can certify 0.80 and above.

How ViJEEta scores you

What happens when you test Cell: The Unit of Life?

Every chapter test is 25 questions. It starts at moderate difficulty and adapts after each saved answer. If you open a solution before answering, that attempt earns no credit, so your mastery stays honest.

Start the Cell: The Unit of Life test

Chapters either side of Cell: The Unit of Life by weight

Molecular Basis of Inheritance Weight 9.1/100Morphology of Flowering Plants Weight 7.9/100Principles of Inheritance and Variation Weight 7.9/100