AQA GCSE Biology Biology Paper 1 (Higher), June 2025: Question 1

11 marks · Low Demand difficulty · Short Answer

Answer questions about measles transmission, symptoms, plant origins of aspirin, herd immunity, and calculate values and interpret data from a bar chart comparing measles severity in vaccinated versus unvaccinated children.

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Question

Question text

01 Measles is an infectious disease caused by a pathogen.

01.1 What type of pathogen causes measles?

[1 mark]

01.2 Give one way measles is spread from one person to another person.

[1 mark]

01.3 One symptom of measles is pain.

In adults, aspirin can be used to treat the pain.

Which plant did aspirin originate from?

[1 mark]

01.4 Give one other symptom of measles.

Do not refer to pain in your answer.

[1 mark]

The spread of measles can be reduced by vaccination.

01.5 Explain why vaccinating large numbers of children helps to reduce the spread of the

measles pathogen in the population.

[2 marks]

Figure 1 shows information about the severity of measles infection in vaccinated and

unvaccinated children.

Figure 1

01.6 There were 240 children in the survey.

Calculate how many unvaccinated children had a severe measles infection.

Use Figure 1.

[3 marks]

Number of unvaccinated children =5

01.7 It is recommended that all children are given a measles vaccination.

Give evidence from Figure 1 to support the recommendation.

Include data from Figure 1 in your answer.

[2 marks]

Mark scheme

Show the mark scheme

Question 1

AO /

Question Answers Extra information Mark

Spec Ref.

01.1 virus 1 AO1

4.3.1.2

AO /

Spec Ref.

01.2 any one from: 1 AO1

• (transfer of) droplets / saliva / 4.3.1.2

mucus

• sneezes

• coughs

ignore other methods of

transferring pathogens,

unqualified such as touch or

direct contact

do not accept transfer through

sexual intercourse

AO /

Spec Ref.

01.3 willow ignore parts of willow such as 1 AO1

bark / leaves 4.3.1.9

AO /

Spec Ref.

01.4 fever allow high temperature 1 AO1

allow (increased) sweating 4.3.1.2

(red skin) rash allow (red) spots / lumps / boils

allow red / itchy skin

allow cough / sneeze

allow runny / blocked nose

allow sore throat

allow red / watery / sore eyes

allow headache

ignore flu-like symptoms,

unqualified

ignore pain unqualified

do not accept nausea /

diarrhoea

8 AO /

Spec Ref.

01.5 allow named types of pathogen AO2

4.3.1.2

few(er) people (in population) allow (provides) herd immunity 1 4.3.1.7

with pathogen / measles /

disease (due to vaccination)

(so) less likely for pathogen / allow less likely to come into 1

measles / disease to be passed contact with a person with

on pathogen / measles / disease

or ignore (so) spread of disease is

(so) less likely for pathogen / reduced

measles / disease to be spread /

caught

allow 2 marks for fewer people

with measles, so less likely to

spread

AO /

Spec Ref.

01.6 (graph reading) = 45 1 AO2

4.3.1.2

× 240 allow 0.45 × 240 1

108 1

allow for 1 mark an answer of 7 /

7.2 with evidence of having

used 3(%) from Figure 1

allow for 1 mark an answer of 88

/ 88.8 / 89 with evidence of

having used 37(%) from

Figure 1

AO /

Spec Ref.

01.7 allow answers in terms of AO3

numbers of children or likelihood 4.3.1.2

of getting disease

a lower percentage of allow converse 1

vaccinated children have severe

measles / infection / disease

a higher percentage of

unvaccinated children have

severe measles / infection /

disease

vaccination reduces severity of 9

measles / infection / disease

correct use of supporting allow examples such as (severe 1

comparative data from Figure 9 disease is) 42% higher (in

unvaccinated) or 15 times

higher (than in vaccinated)

allow correct use of raw data

used in a comparative way

Total Question 1 11

How to answer it

Measles: Pathogens, Symptoms, Herd Immunity & Graph Analysis

📋 What this question tests

This question assesses core recall, biological mechanisms, and quantitative data analysis across Topic B3: Infection and Response:

Pathogen identification & transmission: Recognising that measles is viral and spread via airborne droplets.
Drug discovery: Recalling that aspirin originates from the bark of willow trees.
Clinical symptoms: Recalling key symptoms of viral infection (fever and red skin rash).
Herd immunity: Explaining why widespread vaccination limits the transmission of pathogens.
Graph analysis & percentage calculations: Extracting discrete data from grouped bar charts and calculating real numbers from percentages.

Question 01.1 • 1 Mark (AO1)

Pathogen Causing Measles

Identifying the type of infectious microorganism

✅ Correct Answer

Virus

💡 Key Knowledge

Measles is caused by a morbillivirus. GCSE biology specifies four main types of pathogens: viruses, bacteria, fungi, and protists.

❌ Common Errors

Confusing viral diseases with bacterial infections like Salmonella or Gonorrhoea. Never write "bacteria" or "germ".

Mark allocation: 1 mark for stating virus .

Question 01.2 • 1 Mark (AO1)

Transmission of Measles

Explaining how the pathogen spreads between individuals

✅ Correct Answers (Any one)

(Transfer of) droplets / saliva / mucus
Sneezes
Coughs
Inhalation of droplets

🧠 Exam Technique

Be specific about the mechanism. Saying "through the air" is too vague—examiners specifically look for droplet infection expelled through coughs or sneezes.

❌ Common Errors

Writing unqualified terms like "direct contact", "touch", or claiming transmission via "sexual intercourse" (explicitly rejected in the mark scheme).

Mark allocation: 1 mark for mentioning airborne droplets, sneezing, or coughing.

Question 01.3 • 1 Mark (AO1)

Plant Origin of Aspirin

Drug extraction and traditional remedies

✅ Correct Answer

Willow (or willow tree / willow bark)

💡 Key Knowledge

Three plant/fungal drugs must be memorised for AQA GCSE:

Aspirin: Willow (bark)
Digitalis: Foxglove
Penicillin: Penicillium mould

❌ Common Errors

Confusing aspirin with digitalis (foxglove) or naming poppies (source of morphine, not on the specification).

Mark allocation: 1 mark for naming willow .

Question 01.4 • 1 Mark (AO1)

Other Symptoms of Measles

Clinical presentation without repeating question cues

✅ Correct Answers (Any one)

Fever / high temperature / sweating
(Red skin) rash / red spots
Runny / blocked nose
Sore throat / cough / watery red eyes

🧠 Read The Command Carefully

The question strictly states: "Do not refer to pain in your answer." Any mention of pain (e.g., headache, muscle ache) alone is ignored or penalised if not accompanied by a valid alternative.

❌ Common Errors

Vague statements like "feeling sick" or incorrect symptoms such as "nausea" and "diarrhoea" are rejected by examiners.

Mark allocation: 1 mark for fever or (red skin) rash .

Question 01.5 • 2 Marks (AO2)

Explaining Herd Immunity

Why widespread vaccination halts community transmission

✅ Model Answer (2 Marks)

Vaccination means fewer people in the population can become infected (Mark 1), so it is less likely for the pathogen to be passed on / spread to unvaccinated individuals (Mark 2).

💡 Biological Principle

This is herd immunity. If most people are immune, the chain of infection is broken. Susceptible people (such as babies too young to be vaccinated) are protected because they rarely encounter an infected host.

🧠 How to Secure Both Marks

Link the cause to the population effect:

Cause: Fewer people carry the disease / widespread immunity.
Effect: Greatly reduced chance of infected and non-immune individuals coming into contact.

Mark breakdown:
• 1 mark: Fewer people in the population with the pathogen / disease (or providing herd immunity).
• 1 mark: Less likely for the disease to spread / be passed on.

Question 01.6 • 3 Marks (AO2)

Calculation: Unvaccinated Children with Severe Infection

Data reading and applying percentage calculations

📐 Step-by-Step Calculation

Step 1: Read the graph accurately
Find the shaded bar for "Severe" infection in "Unvaccinated" children.
Percentage = 45%
Step 2: Set up the calculation
Total sample = 240 children.
Number = (45 ÷ 100) × 240 or 0.45 × 240
Step 3: Calculate the final integer
0.45 × 240 = 108 children.

❌ Common Traps & Partial Credit

Reading the wrong bar: Reading the vaccinated severe bar (3%) gives 7.2 children (awards only 1 compensation mark).
Reading mild instead of severe: Reading 37% (unvaccinated mild) gives 88.8 children (awards only 1 compensation mark).
Unit error: Writing "108%" instead of 108 children. The question asks for the number of children.

Mark breakdown:
• Mark 1: Correct percentage identified from graph ( 45% ).
• Mark 2: Correct method shown ( (45 / 100) × 240 or 0.45 × 240 ).
• Mark 3: Correct answer of 108 (an answer of 108 alone gains full 3 marks).

Question 01.7 • 2 Marks (AO3)

Supporting Recommendations with Comparative Data

Using evidence from bar charts to justify medical advice

✅ Model Answer (2 Marks)

Claim: Vaccination significantly reduces the severity of the measles infection (or a much lower percentage of vaccinated children developed severe measles) [1 mark].

Data comparison: Only 3% of vaccinated children had severe measles compared to 45% of unvaccinated children (a 42% reduction) [1 mark].

🧠 Exam Technique: Comparative Data

Whenever a question asks to "Include data from Figure X" to support a conclusion:

You must state both figures you are comparing (e.g., vaccinated vs unvaccinated) OR state the calculated mathematical difference (42%).
Quoting only one number (e.g. "only 3% of vaccinated got severe measles") will not earn the data mark!

❌ Common Errors

Making general statements like "the graph shows vaccines work" without explicitly mentioning severity or omitting numerical percentages.

Mark breakdown:
• 1 mark: Lower percentage of vaccinated children have severe measles (or converse: higher percentage in unvaccinated).
• 1 mark: Valid comparative data used (e.g., 3% vs 45%, severe disease is 42% lower in vaccinated, or 15 times lower).

Topics

Biology · B3: Infection and Response

Question and mark scheme from the AQA GCSE Biology examination, Biology Paper 1 (Higher), June 2025. QuestionVault is an independent revision resource; questions remain the copyright of the awarding body.