Question Constellation Sign up for free AQA · GCSE · Biology · Higher
Prokaryotic and eukaryotic cell differences
Bacterial cells are prokaryotic cells.
Give three ways that a prokaryotic cell is different from a eukaryotic cell.
Write your answer first. You can study the marking guidance whenever you need it.
Study the marking See what earns credit and compare it with a full-mark answer.
Marking points
- 1 Contrasts the absence of a nucleus / free DNA in the cytoplasm.
- 2 Contrasts the absence of mitochondria.
- 3 Identifies a single loop/strand of DNA.
- 4 Identifies plasmids / small rings of DNA.
- 5 Identifies the prokaryotic cell as smaller or as having smaller ribosomes.
Full-mark answer
A prokaryotic cell has no nucleus, so its DNA is free in the cytoplasm; it has no mitochondria; and it can contain plasmids, which are small rings of DNA.
Why this answer loses marks
Its genetic information is in the cytoplasm.
The mark scheme ignores “genetic information” alone; identify DNA or genetic material precisely and make the cell-type difference clear.