Correct Answer: A

Rationale: The correct answer is A: Giardia lamblia. Giardia lamblia is a flagellated protozoan with two nuclei, known as the "falling leaf" appearance. It causes diarrhea in humans through ingestion of contaminated water or food. Entamoeba histolytica causes amoebic dysentery, characterized by bloody diarrhea and colitis. Trichomonas vaginalis is a sexually transmitted protozoan causing vaginal discharge but is not found in stool. Balantidium coli is a ciliated protozoan causing diarrhea but does not have flagellated forms.

Correct Answer: A

Rationale: The correct answer is A: Trichomonas vaginalis. Trichomonas vaginalis is a flagellated protozoa that causes the sexually transmitted infection trichomoniasis. The presence of an undulating membrane in vaginal discharge samples is characteristic of Trichomonas vaginalis. Giardia lamblia causes gastrointestinal illness, not vaginal infections. Trypanosoma brucei causes African sleeping sickness transmitted by tsetse flies. Leishmania donovani causes visceral leishmaniasis transmitted by sandflies.

Correct Answer: C

Rationale: The correct answer is C: Peptidoglycan. Bacterial cell walls are primarily composed of peptidoglycan, a unique molecule consisting of alternating sugar chains connected by peptide cross-links. This structure provides rigidity and shape to the cell wall, protecting the bacterial cell from osmotic pressure. Lipopolysaccharides (A) are found in the outer membrane of Gram-negative bacteria. Cellulose (B) is a component of plant cell walls, not bacterial cell walls. Chitin (D) is a polysaccharide found in the exoskeletons of arthropods and fungi, not in bacterial cell walls.

Correct Answer: D

Rationale: Interferon is a cell-specific protein that is produced and released from infected cells in response to viral infections. It acts extracellularly to interfere with viral replication, not to inactivate the virus itself. Interferon is not coded for by cellular DNA, but by viral RNA during infection. Therefore, the correct answer, D, is that interferon is not virus-specific but is cell-specific. This is because interferon can be produced by various cell types in response to different types of viral infections, making it a broad-spectrum antiviral defense mechanism.

Correct Answer: D

Rationale: The correct answer is D: pinocytosis. This is an active transport mechanism where cells engulf fluids or solutes through vesicles. Energy is required to transport substances against a concentration gradient. A is incorrect as pinocytosis is an active process, not passive like pinocytosis. B is incorrect as facilitated diffusion is a passive process that uses carrier proteins to move substances down a concentration gradient. C is incorrect as filtration is a passive process that relies on pressure gradients to move substances across a barrier. Therefore, D is the correct choice as it involves the active transport of substances into the cell.