What is the correct answer to the Cell Structure and Function NEET 2026 matching question?
Option B is correct: A-II, B-I, C-IV, D-III. This Cell Structure and Function NEET 2026 Biology question appeared in Code-50, held on 21 June 2026. The question bank classifies it as medium difficulty. The archive groups it under Cell Structure and Function, but the tested concepts belong to Biomolecules.
Assign each substance to its biological role or protein category:
- Molecules: A = starch; B = antibody; C = Concanavalin A; D = GLUT-4.
- Descriptions: I = defence against infection; II = stored energy reserve; III = movement of glucose across a membrane; IV = carbohydrate-binding protein or lectin.
The supplied answer codes are:
Molecule B means antibody. Option B means the complete answer sequence.
Why do starch and antibody match energy storage and defence?
A-II follows from starch’s storage role; B-I follows from antibodies’ role in immune defence. Establish each molecule’s identity before assigning its function. Use the NCERT-aligned sequence identity → biological role → numbered match, rather than relying on option elimination.
Step 1: Identify starch. Starch is a polysaccharide made from repeating glucose units. Because its repeating units are the same kind of molecule, starch is a glucose homopolymer.
Plants store starch as an energy reserve. Its identity and storage role therefore give A-II.
Step 2: Identify antibody. Antibodies are immunoglobulins, a class of proteins involved in defence against infection. They recognise specific antigens and contribute to immune defence, giving B-I.
The partial result is A-II, B-I. It does not settle the answer because both options B and C contain these matches.
How is Concanavalin A different from GLUT-4?
Concanavalin A binds carbohydrates; GLUT-4 transports glucose across a membrane. Both are proteins, but they have different functions. The remaining matches depend on distinguishing a protein’s binding category from its membrane-transport role.
Step 3: Identify Concanavalin A. It is a lectin, meaning a carbohydrate-binding protein. Description IV names that category, so the match is C-IV.
Binding a carbohydrate does not, by itself, mean carrying glucose across a cell membrane. Binding describes recognition or attachment; transport describes movement from one side of a membrane to the other. The fact that glucose is a carbohydrate does not make every carbohydrate-binding protein a glucose transporter.
Step 4: Identify GLUT-4. It is a membrane glucose transporter that enables facilitated diffusion, giving D-III. Here, glucose moves down its concentration gradient through a membrane transport protein.
This is not direct ATP-driven pumping. GLUT-4 provides a route across the membrane rather than using ATP directly to push glucose against its gradient.
Concanavalin A identifies the lectin category; GLUT-4 identifies the glucose-transport role. These identities establish both matches without relying on the answer codes.
Why does the complete sequence give option B?
The sequence A-II, B-I, C-IV, D-III agrees exactly with option B. All four assignments have been checked:
- Starch: storage polysaccharide, A-II.
- Antibody: defence protein, B-I.
- Concanavalin A: lectin, C-IV.
- GLUT-4: membrane glucose transporter, D-III.
Matching only starch and antibody cannot distinguish option B from option C. The last two assignments decide between them.
Under a scheme awarding four marks for a correct answer and deducting one for an incorrect answer, choosing B rather than C gives this score difference:
What reasoning error produces option C?
Option C exchanges the Concanavalin A and GLUT-4 assignments. Its mapping is A-II, B-I, C-III, D-IV. The starch and antibody matches are correct, but the remaining two are not.
The method error is treating proteins associated with carbohydrates as interchangeable. “Concanavalin A binds carbohydrates, and glucose is a carbohydrate” does not establish movement of glucose across a membrane. Carbohydrate binding alone is insufficient evidence for glucose transport.
Likewise, transporting glucose does not make GLUT-4 a lectin. A protein’s specific category or function must support the match, not just a shared word such as “carbohydrate”.
Use this checking rule: decide whether the named protein binds carbohydrates as a lectin or transports glucose across a membrane. Match the stated function, not the loose association.
Can you solve three related Biomolecules questions independently?
Use molecular identity first, then function, to attempt these three questions. These are original chapter-linked practice questions, not additional NEET PYQs. Attempt all three before reading the answer-and-reason block, and give one factual reason for each choice.
Question 1: Which description correctly identifies starch?
Question 2: Which pairing distinguishes carbohydrate binding from membrane glucose transport?
Question 3: Which member differs from the other three in molecular class?
Answers and reasons
- Question 1: A, glucose homopolymer. Repeating glucose units form starch, a storage polysaccharide. “Homopolymer” means the polymer contains one kind of repeating monomer. An amino-acid polymer would instead be a polypeptide, while nucleotides form nucleic acids.
- Question 2: A, the first pairing. Concanavalin A belongs to the lectin category because it binds carbohydrates. GLUT-4 carries glucose across a membrane by facilitated diffusion. The distinction is binding versus transport, not carbohydrate-associated versus unrelated.
- Question 3: D, starch. Starch is a carbohydrate. Antibody, Concanavalin A and GLUT-4 are all proteins with different roles. This question tests molecular class, so choosing based on location or function would answer the wrong question.
Cover the answers and reproduce the four roles from memory: starch stores; antibodies defend; Concanavalin A binds carbohydrates; GLUT-4 transports glucose.
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Frequently asked questions
What is the correct answer to the Cell Structure and Function NEET 2026 matching question?
Option B is correct: A-II, B-I, C-IV, D-III. Starch matches stored energy reserve, antibody matches defence against infection, Concanavalin A matches lectin, and GLUT-4 matches glucose transport across a membrane.
What is the difference between Concanavalin A and GLUT-4?
Concanavalin A is a lectin, a carbohydrate-binding protein. GLUT-4 is a membrane protein that transports glucose by facilitated diffusion. Binding carbohydrates is not the same function as transporting glucose across a membrane.
Does GLUT-4 use ATP directly to transport glucose?
No, GLUT-4 does not use ATP directly to pump glucose across a membrane. It enables facilitated diffusion, allowing glucose to move down its concentration gradient through a transport protein.
Is starch a protein or a carbohydrate?
Starch is a carbohydrate, specifically a storage polysaccharide in plants. It is a glucose homopolymer because it contains repeating glucose units. Antibodies, Concanavalin A and GLUT-4, by contrast, are proteins.