Transport in animals — IGCSE Science - Combined (0653) questions by topic
Labelling heart structures, identifying blood components from a photomicrograph, and explaining how vessel structure suits function are the recurring demands: naming an atrium on a heart diagram, distinguishing red blood cells from white cells, and linking artery wall thickness to blood pressure. Explain, describe and identify lead the command words, with explain specifically requiring a reason rather than a repeated observation.
The 17 real questions in this set, taken from 2023 to 2025 papers, carry 1 to 11 marks, so a single label can sit next to a full explanation of coronary heart disease risk. Practising under instant marking is useful for checking that an explanation links reduced blood flow to reduced oxygen delivery, rather than mentioning only one half of that chain.
What examiners look for
- A frequent gap is referring only to reduced oxygen supply without also mentioning the reduced blood flow that causes it.
- A common misconception treats a blockage as increasing the diffusion distance for oxygen into heart tissue, rather than reducing blood flow directly.
- Strong answers state that arteries have thick walls specifically to withstand the pressure of the blood they carry, and go on to name appropriate risk factors for coronary heart disease.
May–June 2025, Paper 23
The diagrams show cross-sections of two different blood vessels. Vessel P is shown as a circular cross-section with a relatively thick wall and a small central lumen. Vessel Q is…
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2025, Paper 31
Fig. 2.1 shows the structure of a human heart. The arrows in Fig. 2.1 show the direction of blood flow through the heart. Use letters P-S to complete the sentences about the heart…
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2025, Paper 33
A student investigates the effect of different physical activity on heart rate. Fig. 2.1 is a bar chart of the results, showing heart rate in beats per minute for five types of…
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2025, Paper 43
Fig. 1.1 is a photomicrograph of human blood. Three components are labelled: X (a small biconcave-looking cell with no nucleus, very numerous), Z (a larger cell with a prominent…
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2024, Paper 31
Fig. 7.1 shows part of the human circulatory system (lungs, heart and blood vessel R), with arrows showing the direction of blood flow. Identify the blood vessel labelled R in…
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2024, Paper 33
Fig. 1.1 is a diagram of the human heart, with labels for blood to the body, blood from the lungs, left atrium, left ventricle, and two gaps. Complete the labels on Fig. 1.1 (the…
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2024, Paper 41
Fig. 1.1 shows the structure of the human heart, with parts labelled X, Y, Z, and arrows showing the direction of blood flow (blood without oxygen leaves the heart, blood with…
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2024, Paper 42
Fig. 7.1 shows the double circulatory system in humans, with the lungs, the rest of the body, and blood vessels X and Y labelled; arrows show the direction of blood flow. Identify…
Answer this question and get it marked →October–November 2024, Paper 31
Anaemia is caused by a deficiency of iron in the diet. (a) Fig. 4.1 shows diagrams of the blood of a person without anaemia and the blood of a person with anaemia. Both show white…
Answer this question and get it marked →October–November 2024, Paper 32
(a) Fig. 4.1 is a diagram of the circulatory system in humans where the arrows show the direction of blood flow. Structure X (the septum) and structure Y (the pulmonary artery)…
Answer this question and get it marked →October–November 2024, Paper 33
(a) Fig. 4.1 is a diagram of the circulatory system in humans where the arrows show the direction of blood flow. Structure X (the septum) and structure Y (the pulmonary artery)…
Answer this question and get it marked →October–November 2024, Paper 42
(a) Fig. 4.1 shows drawings of three different blood vessels, W (thick-walled, medium lumen = artery), X (thin-walled, very small lumen = capillary), and Y (thick wall, large…
Answer this question and get it marked →October–November 2024, Paper 43
(a) Fig. 7.1 shows a diagram of the double circulatory system in humans (with lungs at the top, the heart in the middle, and the rest of the body at the bottom; the arrows show…
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2023, Paper 32
Fig. 1.1 is a diagram of a human heart with labels A, B, C, D and E pointing to different parts. State the letter in Fig. 1.1 that identifies the: right atrium septum
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2023, Paper 41
Fig. 1.1 shows the circulatory system of frogs and the circulatory system of humans (NOT TO SCALE), with a blood vessel labelled X in the human system. Identify the type of blood…
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2023, Paper 43
Fig. 7.1 shows the structure of the human heart (septum labelled). Draw a label line and the letter X on Fig. 7.1 to show one atrium.
Answer this question and get it marked →October–November 2023, Paper 42
Explain one way the structure of an artery is adapted to its function.
Answer this question and get it marked →Other IGCSE Science - Combined topics
- Practical skills (96)
- Motion, forces and energy (53)
- Electricity and magnetism (38)
- Waves (32)
- Human nutrition (23)
- Acids, bases and salts (22)
- Organisms and their environment (21)
- Organic chemistry (21)
- Reproduction (20)
- Thermal physics (20)
- Plant nutrition (19)
- The Periodic Table (18)