NEET (UG) · Botany, Class 11
Cell: The Unit of Life: NEET PYQ, 2018–2026
Cell: The Unit of Life (Botany, Class 11) has been asked 28 times in the 7 NEET papers from 2018, 2020, 2021, 2023, 2024, 2025 and 2026: about 4 questions a paper, 8% of all Botany questions. It is the 2nd most-asked of 17 Botany chapters. NEET 2026 had 7 from it. Last checked 28 October 2026.
Questions per paper
Year by year.
| Year | Questions |
|---|---|
| 2018 | 4 |
| 2020 | 2 |
| 2021 | 4 |
| 2023 | 3 |
| 2024 | 4 |
| 2025 | 4 |
| 2026 | 7 |
From 2021 to 2024 each paper had 200 questions (a Section B with a choice); the others had 180.
Inside the chapter
Topics asked most.
- Cell organelles18
- Prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells4
- Nucleus3
- Cytoskeleton, cilia and flagella2
- Cell membrane1
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10 Cell: The Unit of Life questions to practise.
Our own questions, written in the NEET pattern and checked, each with an explanation. Pick an option to see the answer.
Q1 · Botany · Cell: The Unit of Life
Compared with flagella in eukaryotic cells, cilia are:
Answer: (A)
Cilia are short and hair-like and usually occur in large numbers on a cell. Flagella are longer and usually occur singly or in small numbers. Both share the same 9+2 microtubule arrangement in eukaryotes.
Q2 · Botany · Cell: The Unit of Life
Which statement about the nucleolus is correct?
Answer: (A)
Principle: the nucleolus is a non-membrane-bound region inside the nucleus. It is the site of rRNA synthesis and of assembly of ribosomal subunits, which are then exported to the cytoplasm. Apply: the correct option combines the absence of a membrane with the rRNA and subunit-assembly function.
Q3 · Botany · Cell: The Unit of Life
Carbohydrates in the plasma membrane of an animal cell are most accurately described as:
Answer: (A)
The plasma membrane is asymmetric. Carbohydrates are attached to lipids and proteins on the outer leaflet, forming the glycocalyx. This arrangement helps cells recognise one another and contributes to the cell's surface identity. Recognise that the membrane's asymmetry in carbohydrate placement is consistent with the outer-surface location of the sugars.
Q4 · Botany · Cell: The Unit of Life
Chromatin stains intensely with basic dyes such as hematoxylin or methylene blue. This is mainly because the DNA in chromatin is:
Answer: (A)
Principle: nucleic acids have a sugar-phosphate backbone with phosphate groups that carry negative charge, so DNA is acidic. Basic dyes are positively charged and bind the negatively charged DNA. Applying this, chromatin stains with basic dyes because its DNA is acidic.
Q5 · Botany · Cell: The Unit of Life
During cell division in eukaryotes, the nucleolus:
Answer: (A)
Principle: the nucleolus is dispersed in prophase as the chromatin condenses and reforms in telophase around the nucleolar organiser regions of specific chromosomes. Apply: the correct option gives the disappearance in prophase and the reappearance in telophase, which follows the sequence of mitosis.
Q6 · Botany · Cell: The Unit of Life
Actin microfilaments in a cell are polymers built from globular G-actin monomers. Which statement about the two ends of an actin microfilament is correct?
Answer: (B)
Actin filaments are polar. The barbed (plus) end grows faster than the pointed (minus) end because ATP-bound G-actin adds more readily there. This difference in rate produces treadmilling. Myosin moves along actin filaments but does not control polymerisation directly. Stating that actin is non-polar, or reversing the growth rates, are the main errors.
Q7 · Botany · Cell: The Unit of Life
In a typical eukaryotic cilium or flagellum, how are the microtubules of the axoneme arranged in cross-section?
Answer: (A)
The axoneme is the core of a eukaryotic cilium or flagellum. It is made of microtubules arranged as nine outer doublets around two central singlet microtubules, which gives the 9+2 pattern. Each doublet has an A tubule and a B tubule, and dynein arms link the doublets. Option A is therefore correct. The centriole, which forms the basal body, uses a 9+0 triplet arrangement, which is a different structure.
Q8 · Botany · Cell: The Unit of Life
The sodium-potassium pump in animal cell membranes is an active transporter. In one cycle that consumes one ATP molecule, how many ions are moved and in which directions?
Answer: (A)
The Na+/K+ pump is an antiporter that uses ATP. Each cycle moves three Na+ out and two K+ in, against their gradients. Students often reverse the directions because they recall that sodium is higher outside, and then transpose the numbers.
Q9 · Botany · Cell: The Unit of Life
Glucose is taken up into an intestinal epithelial cell against its concentration gradient by a Na+-glucose symporter on the apical membrane. Which statement correctly describes the energy source for this uptake?
Answer: (B)
Secondary active transport couples the movement of one solute down its electrochemical gradient to the movement of another solute against its gradient. The Na+/K+ ATPase is the primary active transporter that uses ATP to maintain a steep Na+ gradient. The glucose symporter then uses that gradient, so glucose accumulates inside the cell even though it is moving uphill.
Q10 · Botany · Cell: The Unit of Life
A plant cell is placed in a hypotonic solution, meaning the surrounding water has a lower solute concentration than the cell sap. What is the usual result for the cell?
Answer: (A)
In a hypotonic solution, water moves from the region of higher water potential (outside) into the cell by osmosis. The protoplasm presses against the rigid cell wall and the cell becomes turgid.
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All 28 real NEET questions from Cell: The Unit of Life.
The questions from the actual papers, with the official answer and an explanation for each — chapter by chapter, or as full timed papers.
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About Cell: The Unit of Life in NEET.
How many questions come from Cell: The Unit of Life in NEET?
Cell: The Unit of Life (Botany, Class 11) has been asked 28 times in the 7 NEET papers from 2018, 2020, 2021, 2023, 2024, 2025 and 2026: about 4 questions a paper, 8% of all Botany questions. It is the 2nd most-asked of 17 Botany chapters. NEET 2026 had 7 from it.
Which topics of Cell: The Unit of Life are asked most in NEET?
Cell organelles (18), Prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells (4), Nucleus (3), Cytoskeleton, cilia and flagella (2), counted over the papers from 2018–2026.
Is Cell: The Unit of Life important for NEET 2027?
It is in the syllabus in force, so it can be asked. By past papers it ranks 2 of 17 in Botany; use that to decide how much time it gets, not whether to study it.
Where can I solve Cell: The Unit of Life NEET previous year questions?
On Nikaalle, free: sign up and practise every past NEET question from Cell: The Unit of Life with an explanation for each, or sit the full papers timed. The ten questions on this page are our own, written in the same pattern.
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