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Topic Antibiotics
Asked 4 times across 2 UPSC exams over 6 years (2020–2026), peaking in 2020.
Key insights
- Most tested in CDS — 2 of 4 PYQs
- Most asked in 2020
- Recurs across 3 years (2020–2026)
How it travelled across exams
First appearance in each exam — the same idea, reframed.
CDS 2020 → NDA 2020
How the concept evolved
Rising — more than half its appearances (4 of 4) are since 2016.
Related concepts
Ideas UPSC tests alongside this one — keep exploring.
Sample questions
You've seen the pattern — here are a few of the actual PYQs.
CDS2026
The antibiotic penicillin can kill invading bacteria without harming human cells because it targets bacterial :
- A Cell wall ✓
- B Plasma membrane
- C Ribosome
- D Chromosome
✓ Correct answer: (A)
Science & Technology › Biology & Health
NDA2025
Initial discovery of antibiotic penicillin was done by
- A Francis Crick
- B Maurice Wilkins
- C Charles Darwin
- D Alexander Fleming ✓
✓ Correct answer: (D)
Science & Technology › Biology & Health
CDS2020
Antibiotic such as penicillin blocks
- A cell wall formation in bacteria ✓
- B RNA synthesis in bacteria
- C DNA synthesis in bacteria
- D division in bacteria
✓ Correct answer: (A)
Science & Technology › Biology & Health
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