Lesson 3.6.1.3.1

3.6.1.3.1 Control of heart rate by chemoreceptors and pressure receptors Quiz: AQA Biology, Unit 6

20 questions

Written by Revision Ninja · Last reviewed 11 October 2026

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Lesson 3.6.1.3.1, Control of heart rate by chemoreceptors and pressure receptors: 20 multiple choice questions for the AQA Biology (7402), Unit 6: Organisms respond to changes in their internal and external environments, written with Revision Ninja.

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The 20 questions

  1. Which structure acts as the pacemaker of the heart?

    • Purkyne tissue
    • Sinoatrial node (SAN)
    • Bundle of His
    • Atrioventricular node (AVN)

  2. Why does the atrioventricular node (AVN) delay the wave of electrical activity?

    • To increase the speed of the wave in the ventricles
    • To send the signal back to the SAN
    • To stop the heart beating for a short time
    • To allow the atria to contract and empty before the ventricles contract

  3. What is the role of Purkyne tissue?

    • It conducts the wave of excitation rapidly through the bundle of His to the walls of the ventricles
    • It acts as the main pacemaker in the atria
    • It stores blood before the atria contract
    • It produces the hormones that control the heart rate

  4. What is meant by myogenic stimulation of the heart?

    • The heart beat is generated only by nerves from the brain
    • The heart beat stops when there is no oxygen
    • The heart beat is generated by hormones in the blood
    • The heart beat is generated within the cardiac muscle itself, without nerve input

  5. Where are chemoreceptors that monitor heart function located?

    • In the cerebellum, where they detect light
    • In the retina, where they detect colour
    • In the skin, where they detect temperature
    • In the aorta and carotid bodies, where they detect changes in carbon dioxide and pH

  6. Which part of the autonomic nervous system increases heart rate?

    • The enteric nervous system of the gut
    • The somatic motor neurones to skeletal muscle
    • The parasympathetic nervous system via the vagus nerve
    • The sympathetic nervous system

  7. A person's heart rate is 70 beats per minute and stroke volume is 70 cm^3. What is the cardiac output?

    • 70 cm^3 per minute
    • 4900 cm^3 per minute
    • 140 cm^3 per minute
    • 490 cm^3 per minute

  8. A heart rate of 90 beats per minute and a stroke volume of 60 cm^3 gives a cardiac output of how many cm^3 per minute?

    • 540
    • 30
    • 150
    • 5400

  9. Blood carbon dioxide concentration rises during exercise. What is the expected effect on heart rate?

    • It decreases because the SAN stops firing
    • It stays the same, because carbon dioxide does not affect the heart
    • It decreases, because chemoreceptors trigger the parasympathetic nervous system
    • It increases, because chemoreceptors trigger the sympathetic nervous system

  10. Pressure receptors detect a rise in blood pressure in the aorta. What is the likely response?

    • The SAN stops producing impulses permanently
    • The Purkyne tissue starts beating independently
    • Heart rate decreases through the parasympathetic system
    • Heart rate increases through the sympathetic system

  11. A drug blocks the sympathetic nerves to the heart. What is the most likely effect on heart rate?

    • The heart rate is unchanged, because the SAN is independent of nerves
    • The heart stops beating at once
    • The heart rate falls, because the accelerator effect is removed
    • The heart rate rises, because the parasympathetic effect is increased

  12. Where is the bundle of His located?

    • In the septum between the ventricles
    • In the aorta
    • In the carotid sinus
    • In the wall of the right atrium

  13. Which is the correct order of the wave of electrical activity through the heart?

    • SAN, atria, AVN, bundle of His, Purkyne tissue, ventricles
    • SAN, ventricles, AVN, atria, Purkyne tissue, bundle of His
    • AVN, SAN, atria, Purkyne tissue, bundle of His, ventricles
    • Atria, ventricles, SAN, AVN, bundle of His, Purkyne tissue

  14. Why does the AVN delay matter for the efficiency of the heart?

    • It makes the ventricles contract before the atria fill
    • It causes blood to flow backwards into the veins
    • It removes the need for valves in the heart
    • It allows the ventricles to fill fully before they contract, so pumping is effective

  15. Explain why a heart with its nerves cut can still beat rhythmically for a time. Which is the best explanation?

    • The heart is controlled only by hormones in the blood
    • The heart is powered by stored glucose in the valves
    • The heartbeat is myogenic and is generated within the heart muscle itself
    • The heart beats because blood pressure is constant

  16. Which statement about the control of heart rate is most accurate?

    • It is controlled entirely by hormones released from the brain
    • It does not depend on any receptors or nerves
    • It is controlled entirely by the pulmonary artery
    • It is controlled by the myogenic SAN together with nerves and chemoreceptors and pressure receptors

  17. Cardiac output can increase by a rise in heart rate, a rise in stroke volume, or both. What limits how much stroke volume can rise?

    • The number of chloroplasts in the heart
    • The number of red blood cells in the aorta
    • The amount of glucose stored in the atria
    • The amount of blood that fills the ventricles during the diastole, which depends on venous return

  18. What happens to heart rate when the parasympathetic nervous system is stimulated?

    • It stays the same at all times
    • It stops and restarts repeatedly
    • It decreases
    • It increases

  19. Which node lies at the junction of the atria and ventricles and delays the wave of electrical activity?

    • Atrioventricular node (AVN)
    • Bundle of His
    • Sinoatrial node (SAN)
    • Carotid sinus

  20. What is the main role of the chemoreceptors in controlling heart function?

    • They detect changes in blood carbon dioxide and pH and signal the control centre
    • They detect light entering the retina
    • They generate the heartbeat in the sinoatrial node
    • They pump blood out of the ventricles

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