What is the function of platelets in the blood?

Correct Answer: B

Rationale: Platelets play a crucial role in clotting blood to prevent excessive bleeding when injuries occur. They are responsible for initiating the coagulation process by forming clots at the site of injury, sealing the damaged blood vessels, and preventing further blood loss. Platelets do not primarily transport oxygen, fight infection, or transport nutrients. While red blood cells are responsible for carrying oxygen, white blood cells are involved in fighting infections, and nutrients are transported by plasma, platelets' main function is related to hemostasis and wound healing.

Correct Answer: C

Rationale: The thyroid gland is responsible for producing hormones that play a crucial role in regulating metabolism. One of the key hormones produced by the thyroid gland is thyroxine, which directly influences the body's metabolic rate. Therefore, the correct answer is the thyroid gland. The adrenal gland produces hormones like adrenaline, which are associated with the stress response and not primarily metabolic regulation. The pituitary gland regulates various other hormones but is not primarily responsible for metabolic regulation. The liver has a role in metabolism, mainly in processes like detoxification and nutrient storage, but it is not a gland that primarily produces hormones for metabolic regulation, making it an incorrect choice in this context.

Correct Answer: B

Rationale: The correct answer is B: Ball-and-socket joint. A ball-and-socket joint, like the ones found at the shoulder and hip, allows for a wide range of motion. These joints provide multidirectional movement due to the rounded end of one bone fitting into the cup-like socket of another bone, enabling flexion, extension, abduction, adduction, and rotation. Choice A, Hinge joint, is incorrect because hinge joints allow movement in one plane, like a door hinge, and do not provide the wide range of motion seen at the shoulder and hip. Choice C, Pivot joint, is incorrect because pivot joints allow rotation around a single axis, such as the neck, and do not provide the same range of motion as ball-and-socket joints. Choice D, Saddle joint, is incorrect as saddle joints allow movement in multiple directions but are not as versatile or allow as wide a range of motion as ball-and-socket joints.

Correct Answer: B

Rationale: The correct answer is B. Arteries carry oxygenated blood away from the heart to the rest of the body, delivering nutrients and oxygen to the tissues. Veins, on the other hand, carry deoxygenated blood back to the heart. Capillaries are where the exchange of gases, nutrients, and waste products occurs between the blood and tissues. Lymphatic vessels are responsible for transporting lymph, which is a clear fluid containing white blood cells and waste products, and play a key role in the immune system.

Correct Answer: B

Rationale: The iris is the correct answer as it controls the amount of light that enters the eye by adjusting the size of the pupil. The cornea is responsible for focusing light onto the retina, the retina detects light at the back of the eye, and the lens helps in further focusing light onto the retina. The iris, through changing the size of the pupil, regulates the amount of light reaching the eye, making it the part that controls the entry of light.