CAPE Biology Unit 1 case studies
CAPE Biology Unit 1 · Put your knowledge to work in context.
CAPE Biology Unit 1 is one Unit of the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination, the certification offered by the Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) for students in the Caribbean who have completed a minimum of five years of secondary education and wish to further their studies. It is intended for post-CSEC learners preparing for university matriculation or entry-level tertiary programmes; regional universities and institutions in Canada, the USA and the UK have accepted CAPE certification for matriculation and entry, and UWI and the University of Guyana accept six CAPE Units for normal matriculation. The CAPE Biology Unit 1 case studies are 5 cases and about 3,747 words.
1The Sweet Potato Null Point: Estimating Water Potential from Mass-Change Data
A sixth-form student investigates water relations in sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas). Cylinders are cut with a 5 mm cork borer from a single tuber, trimmed to 30 mm, blotted and weighed to 0.01 g.
737 words, about 4 min2Browning in Cut Avocado: Reading Inhibition Kinetics to Choose a Process
A fruit-processing plant wants to slow browning of fresh-cut avocado. Browning is catalysed by polyphenol oxidase (PPO), which oxidises phenolic substrates to quinones that polymerise into brown pigments.
720 words, about 4 min3A Family with a Lysosomal Enzyme Deficiency: Reading Pedigree and Enzyme Data Together
A couple, both clinically unaffected, have a 4-year-old son, Devon, diagnosed at 18 months with a lysosomal storage disorder after episodes of vomiting, an enlarged liver and developmental delay. Enzyme assay results are: Devon 2% of normal activity; mother 48%; father 52%; Devon's 7-year-old sister 100%.
698 words, about 3 min4Three Variants, One Patient: Deciding Which Change Is Pathogenic
A 12-year-old boy is referred with LDL-cholesterol of 9.8 mmol dm⁻³ and xanthomas on the Achilles tendons; his father had a myocardial infarction at 42. The mother's LDL is 3.1 mmol dm⁻³; the father's is 8.4 mmol dm⁻³ and he takes a statin.
824 words, about 4 min5Insecticide Resistance in Aedes aegypti: Selection, Drift, or Something Else?
Fogging with malathion against Aedes aegypti began in one parish in 2016. Researchers sampled larvae from drains in two towns 40 km apart - Port A, which is sprayed, and Port B, which is not - and tested 200 adults per site per year at a discriminating dose.
768 words, about 4 min