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NEET ZoologyUpdated 19 Oct 2026

Biotechnology and Its Applications: NEET PYQs and weightage

Biotechnology and Its Applications carries 4.5 of 100 Zoology marks in NEET by past-paper share: 29 of the 648 tagged NEET Zoology PYQs in the ViJEEta bank (NEET 2013–2026). It ranks 13 of 17 Zoology chapters.

Removed from NEET in this chapter: Transgenic Plants. Still in NCERT and school exams, not asked in NEET now.
Take the 25-question Biotechnology and Its Applications testKey facts ↓All NEET Zoology chapters
4.5/100 Weight in Zoology
4 of 5 Exam importance (4/5, by past-paper share)
29 NEET PYQs
305 Practice questions
245 With measured difficulty

How the weight is computed: this chapter's tagged NEET PYQs divided by all tagged NEET Zoology PYQs in the bank (29 of 648), 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.

Biotechnology and Its Applications: 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. Totipotency and micropropagation

    Totipotency means a whole plant can regrow from any cell or explant. Micropropagation makes thousands of genetically identical plants (somaclones), e.g. tomato, banana and apple.

    Asked as: "Plants raised by micropropagation are called?" somaclones

  2. Virus-free plants from meristem

    The apical and axillary meristem stays virus-free even in an infected plant, so culturing it gives virus-free plants (banana, sugarcane, potato).

    Asked as: "Best part of a plant for raising virus-free plants?" meristem

  3. Somatic hybridisation

    In somatic hybridisation, protoplasts of two varieties (cell walls digested) are fused. Tomato + potato gave pomato, which was not commercially useful.

    Asked as: match the column: pomato somatic hybridisation / protoplast fusion

  4. Golden rice

    Golden rice is GM rice enriched with Vitamin A, an example of a GM crop with better nutritional value.

    Asked as: "Golden rice is enriched in?" Vitamin A

  5. Bt toxin action

    Bt toxin from Bacillus thuringiensis is stored as an inactive protoxin crystal. The alkaline pH of the insect gut activates it. It then binds midgut epithelial cells, makes pores, and the cells swell and lyse.

    Asked as: "Why doesn't Bt toxin kill the bacterium itself?" the toxin is inactive (protoxin)

  6. cry genes

    cryIAc and cryIIAb control cotton bollworms, and cryIAb controls corn borer. Bt toxins kill lepidopterans, coleopterans and dipterans.

    Asked as: "Gene whose protein controls corn borer?" cryIAb

  7. RNAi against nematode

    RNAi against the nematode Meloidegyne incognitia (attacks tobacco roots): nematode genes are introduced with Agrobacterium vectors. Sense and anti-sense RNA pair into dsRNA, which silences the nematode's mRNA.

    Asked as: "RNAi works by?" silencing a specific mRNA with complementary dsRNA

  8. Insulin structure and maturation

    Insulin has chain A and chain B joined by disulphide bridges. It is made as pro-insulin, and the extra C peptide is removed during maturation.

    Asked as: "Which peptide is absent in mature insulin?" C peptide

  9. Eli Lilly rDNA insulin

    In 1983 Eli Lilly made the A and B chains separately in E. coli plasmids, then joined them by disulphide bonds to form human insulin.

    Asked as: "First rDNA human insulin was prepared by?" Eli Lilly, 1983

  10. First gene therapy (ADA deficiency)

    The first clinical gene therapy was in 1990, given to a 4-year-old girl with ADA deficiency. ADA cDNA was put into her lymphocytes with a retroviral vector, and she needs periodic infusion because these cells are not immortal.

    Asked as: "Why is repeated infusion needed in ADA gene therapy?" lymphocytes are not immortal; inserting the gene at early embryonic stages could be a permanent cure

  11. PCR and ELISA

    PCR amplifies nucleic acid, so very low pathogen levels are detected before symptoms appear (used for HIV and for mutations in suspected cancer). ELISA works on antigen–antibody interaction.

    Asked as: "ELISA is based on?" antigen–antibody interaction

  12. Probe and autoradiography

    A radioactive single-stranded DNA/RNA probe is hybridised to cloned DNA and detected by autoradiography. A clone with the mutated gene does not show up on the film.

    Asked as: "Why is the mutated gene absent on the photographic film?" the probe is not complementary to it

  13. Transgenic mice

    Over of all transgenic animals are mice. They serve as disease models for cancer, cystic fibrosis, rheumatoid arthritis and Alzheimer's.

    Asked as: "Most common transgenic animal?" mouse

  14. Transgenic animal products and Rosie

    Transgenic animals make -1-antitrypsin, used for emphysema. Rosie (1997), the first transgenic cow, gave milk with human alpha-lactalbumin ( per litre).

    Asked as: "Rosie's milk contained?" human alpha-lactalbumin

  15. GEAC

    GEAC (Genetic Engineering Approval Committee) is the Indian body that decides on the validity of GM research and the safety of releasing GM organisms.

    Asked as: "Which body approves GM organisms in India?" GEAC

  16. Basmati patent and biopiracy

    In 1997 an American company got a US patent on Basmati, which came from Indian farmers' varieties (27 documented Basmati varieties). Biopiracy is using bio-resources without authorisation or compensatory payment.

    Asked as: Basmati patent case is an example of biopiracy

Trap

Eli Lilly did NOT make pro-insulin in *E. coli*. Chains A and B were produced separately and then joined by disulphide bonds, so there is no C peptide to remove.

How does NEET ask Biotechnology and Its Applications?

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.

Q1ZoologyNEET UG PYQBiotechnological Applications in Medicine
Try right here · No sign-in
Statements related to human insulin are given below: Which statement(s) is/are correct about genetically engineered Insulin? (a) Pro-hormone insulin contain extra stretch of C-peptide (b) A-peptide and B-peptide chains of insulin were produced separately in E. coli, extracted and combined by creating a disulphide bond between them. (c) Insulin used for treating Diabetes was extracted from Cattles and Pigs. (d) Pro-hormone insulin needs to be processed for converting into a mature and functional hormone. (e) Some patients develop allergic reactions to the foreign insulin. Choose the most appropriate answer from the options given below:
Answer key (B) & worked solution

Correct answer: Option B

In mammals, including humans, insulin is synthesised as a pro-hormone which contains an extra stretch called the C peptide. The pro-hormone needs to be processed before it becomes fully mature and functional. However, in case of genetically engineered insulin, there is no C-peptide, hence no proinsulin is formed. Genetically engineered insulin that is used for diabetes is produced using yeast and bacteria, unlike natural insulin which was earlier extracted from pancreas of slaughtered cattle and pigs.
Q2ZoologyNEET UG PYQBiotechnological Applications in Agriculture
The inactive form of Bt toxin is converted to the active form in the insect gut
Adue to acidic pH
Bby proteases
Cby nucleases
Ddue to alkaline pH
Answer key (D) & worked solution

Correct answer: Option D

Bt toxin protein exists as inactive protoxins, but once an insect ingests the inactive toxin, it is converted into an active form of toxin due to the alkaline pH of the gut which solubilises the crystals.
Q3ZoologyNEET UG PYQBiotechnological Applications in Medicine
Match List I with List II. List IList IIA. α-1 antitrypsinI. Cotton bollwormB. Cry 1AbII. ADA deficiencyC. Cry 1AcIII. EmphysemaD. Enzyme replacement therapyIV. Corn borer Choose the correct answer from the options given below.
AA-III, B-I, C-II, D-IV
BA-III, B-IV, C-I, D-II
CA-II, B-IV, C-I, D-III
DA-II, B-I, C-IV, D-III
Answer key (B) & worked solution

Correct answer: Option B

• Transgenic animals that produce useful biological products can be created by the introduction of the portion of DNA (or genes) which codes for a particular product such as human protein (α-1-antitrypsin) used to treat emphysema. • the proteins encoded by the genes cryIAc and cryIIAb control the cotton bollworms, that of cryIAb controls corn borer • In some children ADA deficiency can be cured by bone marrow transplantation; in others it can be treated by enzyme replacement therapy, in which functional ADA is given to the patient by injection.
Q4ZoologyNEET UG PYQIntroduction and Plant Tissue Culture
The capacity to generate a whole plant from any cell of the plant is called
AMicropropagation
BDifferentiation
CSomatic hybridization
DTotipotency
Answer key (D) & worked solution

Correct answer: Option D

It was learnt by scientists, during 1950s, that whole plants could be regenerated from explants, i.e., any part of a plant taken out and grown in a test tube, under sterile conditions in special nutrient media. This capacity to generate a whole plant from any cell/explant is called totipotency
Q5ZoologyNEET UG PYQBiotechnological Applications in Agriculture
Which of the following is true for Golden rice?
AIt is pest resistant, with a gene from Bacillus thuringiensis
BIt is drought tolerant developed using Agrobacterium vector
CIt has yellow grains because of a gene introduced from a primitive variety of rice
DIt is Vitamin A enriched with a gene from daffodil
Answer key (D) & worked solution

Correct answer: Option D

Golden rice is vitamin A enriched rice, which contains a gene from daffodil and is rich in carotene. It is used to cure deficiency of vitamin A.
Q6ZoologyNEET UG PYQBiotechnological Applications in Agriculture
What triggers activation of protoxin to active Bt toxin of Bacillus thuringiensis in bollworm?
AMoist surface of midgut
BAlkaline pH of gut
CAcidic pH of stomach
DBody temperature
Answer key (B) & worked solution

Correct answer: Option B

Bacillus thuringiensis forms protein crystals during a particular phase of their growth. These crystals contain a toxic insecticidal protein. These proteins exist as inactive protoxins but once an insect ingest the inactive toxin, it is converted into an active form of toxin due to alkaline pH of the gut which solubilize the crystals. The activated toxin binds to the surface of midgut epithelial cells and creates pores that cause cell swelling and lysis and eventually cause death of insects.
Q7ZoologyNEET UG PYQBiotechnological Applications in Medicine
With regard to insulin choose correct options. (a) C-peptide is not present in mature insulin. (b) The insulin produced by rDNA technology has C-peptide. (c) The pro-insulin has C-peptide. (d) A-peptide and B-peptide of insulin are interconnected by disulphide bridges Choose the correct answer from the options given below.
A(a), (c) and (d) only
B(a) and (d) only
C(b) and (d) only
D(b) and (c) only
Answer key (A) & worked solution

Correct answer: Option A

In mammals, including humans, insulin is synthesized as a prohormone (like a pro-enzyme, the pro-hormone also needs to be processed before it becomes a fully mature and functional hormone) which contains an extra stretch called the C peptide. This C peptide is not present in the mature insulin and is removed during maturation into insulin. A and B chain of insulin are connected by disulphide bridges.
Q8ZoologyNEET UG PYQBiotechnological Applications in Agriculture
Silencing of specific mRNA is possible via RNAi because of -
AComplementary tRNA
BNon-complementary ssRNA
CComplementary dsRNA
DInhibitory ssRNA
Answer key (C) & worked solution

Correct answer: Option C

RNA interference (RNAi) is a gene-silencing mechanism used by cells to regulate gene expression or defend against viral RNA. It works through double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) that is complementary to the target mRNA. This is how it works: Introduction of complementary dsRNA into the cell. The dsRNA is recognized and cleaved by an enzyme called Dicer into small fragments called siRNA (small interfering RNA). These siRNAs bind to a protein complex called RISC (RNA-induced silencing complex). The siRNA guides RISC to the complementary mRNA, leading to its cleavage and silencing (i.e., preventing translation). Therefore, complementary double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) is crucial for initiating RNAi.

Which topics in Biotechnology and Its Applications carry the most questions?

All 7 topics, by tagged PYQs, then practice questions. Counted from the bank. Updated 19 Oct 2026.

TopicPYQsPractice questions
Biotechnological Applications in Medicine12127
Biotechnological Applications in Agriculture1286
Introduction and Plant Tissue Culture27
Transgenic Animals133
Miscellaneous Examples125
Ethical Issues124
Transgenic PlantsNot in NEET now03

Why does Biotechnology and Its Applications show "–" until you answer 3 questions?

Unknown is not zero. Until you answer at least 3 graded questions in Biotechnology and Its Applications, 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.

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What happens when you test Biotechnology and Its Applications?

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.

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Chapters either side of Biotechnology and Its Applications by weight

Locomotion and Movement Weight 5.1/100Structural Organisation in Animals Weight 4.6/100Microbes in Human Welfare Weight 3.9/100Digestion and Absorption Weight 3.4/100