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Biology - Principles of Inheritance and Variation

Practise 48 NEST (NISER) previous year questions on Principles of Inheritance and Variation, compiled from papers spanning 2011 to 2026. Each question is pulled directly from the actual exam paper it appeared in, so you're practising in the exact style and difficulty NEST (NISER) tests.

Principles of Inheritance and Variation has been asked in 16 of the 16 years of NEST (NISER) papers analysed (2011–2026), with 48 questions in all. 0% of them were easy, 90% moderate and 10% tough. Most of its questions came from 2023, with 7 questions that year. In the last three years (2024–2026) it had 8 questions across 4 papers, about 2 per paper.

The chapter's 8 topics are not weighted equally: Mendel's Laws of Inheritance (16 questions, 33%), Genetic Disorders (14 questions, 29%), and Mendel’s Work and Results (7 questions, 15%) have been asked the most. Mendel's Laws of Inheritance has also led over the last five years, with 8 questions. Mendel’s Work and Results has produced the most tough questions (2).

  1. 1Mendel's law of independent assortment implies that2026Mendel's Laws of Inheritance
  2. 2In a haplodiploid ant species, sons are haploid and produced from unfertilized eggs, while daughters are diploid and produced from fertilize2026Chromosome Theory of Inheritance
  3. 3Four pedigrees are shown, where square represents male and circle represents female. Affected individuals are represented as filled squares 2025Genetic Disorders
  4. 4When a true-breeding purple-fruit-bearing brinjal plant is crossed with a true-breeding white-fruit-bearing brinjal plant, all the F1 plants2025Incomplete Dominance
  5. 5In a given plant, the flower colour is governed by a single gene locus. The flower can be either white, red, blue or purple colour. However,2024 (Session 1)Mendel’s Work and Results
  6. 6In the given pedigree, circles represent females and squares represent males. Filled shapes indicate affected individuals, while unfilled sh2024 (Session 1)Genetic Disorders
  7. 7In the given pedigree, circles represent females and squares represent males. Filled shapes indicate affected individuals, while unfilled sh2024 (Session 2)Genetic Disorders
  8. 8In a plant, alleles and govern leaf colour (purple or green) whereas and govern shape of the leaf edge (sharp or rounded). A cross performed2024 (Session 2)Mendel’s Work and Results
  9. 9A population has a single locus with three alleles ( , and X 3 ). The frequencies of these alleles are and r , respectively, and if , then t2023 (Session 1)Mendel's Laws of Inheritance
  10. 10In the given pedigree, circles represent females and squares represent males. Filled shapes indicate affected individuals while unfilled sha2023 (Session 1)Genetic Disorders
  11. 11Mendelian theory of inheritance was crucial for Darwin-Wallace's theory of natural selection because2023 (Session 1)Mendel's Laws of Inheritance
  12. 12An example of multiple alleles is seen at a locus that determines the feather pattern of mallard ducks. One allele M produces the wild-type 2023 (Session 2)Multiple Alleles / Co-dominance
  13. 13In the given pedigree, circles represent females and squares represent males. Filled shapes indicate affected individuals while unfilled sha2023 (Session 2)Genetic Disorders
  14. 14In a true-breeding homozygous lines of snapdragon, Antirrhinium majus, white coloured flower of personate shape was crossed with red coloure2023 (Session 2)Mendel's Laws of Inheritance
  15. 15A population has three genotypes, and YY , where X is dominant over the Y allele. The number of each genotype in the population is as follow2023 (Session 2)Mendel's Laws of Inheritance
  16. 16In a certain population of beetles that is in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, black colour is a recessive phenotype and grey colour is a dominan2022 (Session 1)Mendel's Laws of Inheritance
  17. 17In the given pedigree, circles represent females and squares represent males. Filled shapes indicate affected individuals while unfilled sha2022 (Session 1)Genetic Disorders
  18. 18In corn, the genotype - results in colored kernels; whereas homozygous recessive condition for at least one of these genes results in colorl2022 (Session 1)Mendel's Laws of Inheritance
  19. 19In a family, the third child showed Down's syndrome but neither of the parents nor siblings of the affected child manifested symptoms of the2022 (Session 2)Genetic Disorders
  20. 20The pedigree shown below represents the inheritance pattern of X-linked recessive color blindness trait (genotype ). In the pedigree, circle2022 (Session 2)Sex Determination
  21. 21A mutation in an autosomal gene, Tum, causes benign tumor in a dominant manner ( and are two alleles of the gene). A mutation in another aut2022 (Session 2)Mendel's Laws of Inheritance
  22. 22The pathway that determines skin pigmentation in dogs is governed by two unlinked genes ( and II). While gene determines the type of pigment2021 (Session 1)Mendel's Laws of Inheritance
  23. 23In the given pedigree, circles represent females and squares represent males. Filled shapes indicate affected individuals; while, unfilled s2021 (Session 1)Genetic Disorders
  24. 24In the given pedigree, circles represent females and squares represent males. Filled shapes indicate affected individuals for a particular t2021 (Session 2)Genetic Disorders
  25. 25A cross was performed between two parent plants of unknown genotypes. The offspring were segregated based on two flower characteristics i.e.2020 (Session 1)Mendel's Laws of Inheritance
  26. 26A crop variety was developed at a research station in Dehradun (located in a temperate zone) and this variety produces round ( , or ) or wri2020 (Session 2)Mendel’s Work and Results
  27. 27Barbara McClintock observed non-Mendelian pigmentation patterns in maize (figure 1) mediated by transposons, as also observed in Petunia (fi2020 (Session 2)Mutation
  28. 28The common morning glory (Ipomoea purpurea) exhibits two flower colours, where purple is dominant over pink. Within a population of common m2019 (Session 1)Mendel’s Work and Results
  29. 29Seed traits of a given plant species following genetic inheritance are: A cross was performed between two plants, and of the same species; w2019 (Session 1)Mendel’s Work and Results
  30. 30In a plant, red flower colour is dominant over white, tall stem is dominant over dwarf and round seed shape is dominant over wrinkled. A pla2019 (Session 2)Mendel's Laws of Inheritance
  31. 31A group of researchers performed a genetic survey of two different human populations, one living in a deep tropical forest and the other in 2019 (Session 2)Genetic Disorders
  32. 32A sex-linked recessive gene in humans produces color-blind men when hemizygous , and color-blind women when homozygous . A non-linked, autos2019 (Session 2)Sex Determination
  33. 33A cross between two plants with genotypes, PpQq and PpQq was carried out where and are dominant over and , respectively. Of the total progen2018Mendel's Laws of Inheritance
  34. 34The condition( s ) that allow( s ) a population to exist in genetic equilibrium is/are:2018Mendel's Laws of Inheritance
  35. 35Consider two unlinked genes and . A plant with genotype was crossed with another plant with genotype to obtain progeny. If the progeny is te2017Mendel's Laws of Inheritance
  36. 36Two pedigrees (P and Q) are given below. Individual-1 in generation of pedigree Q is not a carrier of the trait. Circles in the pedigree rep2017Genetic Disorders
  37. 37A pedigree chart of a family with an autosomal recessive disease Z is given. Assume that inheritance is Mendelian, and that all individuals 2016Genetic Disorders
  38. 38In order to study the lysine biosynthetic pathway in yeast, lysine auxotrophs (mutants that are unable to grow without lysine supplementatio2016Mutation
  39. 39Assume that the coat colour in a mammal is dictated by a genetically controlled biosynthetic pathway as depicted in the diagram below The pi2016Mendel's Laws of Inheritance
  40. 40Recessive mutations in some rare genetic disorders can manifest as disease. A couple had four sons and four daughters, of which two sons dev2015Sex Determination
  41. 41The following crosses were performed between parental lines with indicated genotypes. (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) (v) (vi) The above crosses that ar2015Mendel’s Work and Results
  42. 42In a long-term study of a population of a self-pollinated plant, it was observed that an allele, which significantly enhanced vegetative gro2015Chromosome Theory of Inheritance
  43. 43If a female, who is a carrier of the haemophilia gene, has a child with a male who does not have haemophilia, which of the following predict2014Genetic Disorders
  44. 44Huntington's disease is a genetic disorder that leads to defects in brain function and is always fatal. The affected gene consists of a sequ2014Mutation
  45. 45In order to improve local cattle breeds in India, male cattle were procured from Australia. All imported male cattle had white skin (genotyp2013Mendel’s Work and Results
  46. 46The phenomenon of "linked genes" contradicts which of the following fundamental principles of genetics?2012Mendel's Laws of Inheritance
  47. 47Birth records of 4 babies were mixed up in a hospital. The ABO blood groups of the four babies were known to be and O . To determine their r2012Multiple Alleles / Co-dominance
  48. 48Following is a pedigree analysis of inheritance of a trait in a family: The above inheritance pattern is due to a2011Genetic Disorders

Frequently Asked Questions

1.How many questions are available for Principles of Inheritance and Variation?

This chapter includes 48 questions compiled from NEST (NISER) papers spanning 2011 to 2026.

2.Are these questions only from NEST (NISER), or from other exams too?

These are NEST (NISER) questions specifically for the Principles of Inheritance and Variation chapter. Questions from other exams like JEE Main or NTA Abhyas (JEE Main) are organised separately under their respective exam sections.

3.Is Principles of Inheritance and Variation an important chapter for NEST (NISER) Biology?

Principles of Inheritance and Variation has appeared in 16 of the 16 years of NEST (NISER) papers covered here, with 48 questions across 22 papers - about 2 per paper it appears in.

4.What is the difficulty level of Principles of Inheritance and Variation questions in NEST (NISER)?

Of the 48 questions analysed for this chapter, 0% are easy, 90% moderate and 10% tough. 2023 had the most, with 7 questions.

5.Which topics in Principles of Inheritance and Variation should I focus on?

These topics have carried the most weightage in Principles of Inheritance and Variation:

  • Mendel's Laws of Inheritance - 16 questions (33%)
  • Genetic Disorders - 14 questions (29%)
  • Mendel’s Work and Results - 7 questions (15%)
  • Mendel’s Work and Results has produced the most tough questions (2).
6.Is Principles of Inheritance and Variation's weightage in NEST (NISER) going up or down?

Across all 22 papers analysed, Principles of Inheritance and Variation has averaged about 2.2 questions per paper. In the last three years (2024–2026), that average has stayed about the same, at about 2.0 questions per paper. Use the year-wise numbers on this page for the exact trend before you decide how much time to give it.