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Question #46516
The Question
Prolonged broad-spectrum antibiotic therapy in a patient causes severe gut dysbiosis, disrupting the normal niche overlap and resource partitioning among commensal bacteria. Subsequently, a localized mutation in the patient's intestinal epithelium rapidly progresses to metastasis. Based on the principles of mucosal immunity and cellular biology, which of the following best explains this rapid cancer progression?
Options
- A.
Loss of microbial resource partitioning reduces regulatory signaling to MALT, leading to a failure in immunosurveillance that permits mutated cells to lose contact inhibition and metastasize.
- B.
Dysbiosis enhances Gause’s competitive exclusion, causing MALT to overproduce regulatory T-cells that restore contact inhibition in the mutated epithelial cells.
- C.
The disruption of the microbiome niche overlap depletes MALT, which constitutes about 20% of the body's lymphoid tissue, thereby suppressing the innate mucosal barriers.
- D.
Failure of resource partitioning leads to the competitive release of pathogens that directly induce metastasis by strengthening the tight junctions of the intestinal epithelium.
Check Your Answer
Correct Answer
Step-by-Step Solution
Explanation
How the Examiner Thinks
Comparative_Analysis
Sharpen your ability to evaluate multiple scenarios and distinguish between competing potential answers.
Concepts Behind This Question
MALT Structure|Niche Overlap vs Resource Partitioning|Metastasis
Why This Question Is Tricky
Common Mistakes
Conceptual Pivot: Synthesizing ecological population interactions (resource partitioning) with human immunology (MALT function) and cancer biology (contact inhibition).
The question tests the student's ability to link multi-chapter NCERT concepts while avoiding high-frequency traps: quantitative misrepresentation (MALT percentage) and functional inversion (contact inhibition and tight junction integrity during metastasis).
Quick Facts About This Question
Question Information
| Subject | Biology |
| Chapter | Human Health and Disease - Class 12 |
| Concept | MALT Structure |
| Difficulty | 8 |
| Cognitive Load | 5 |
| Target Solve Time | 120 sec |
| Access | Free |