The biuret test would indicate a positive result for proteins in which of the following solutions?

Choice A rationale: Sudan IV is a stain used to stain lipids. It is a red powder that dissolves in lipids and stains them red, but does not react with sugars. ¹

Choice B rationale: Benedict's is a reagent used to test for reducing sugars. It is a blue solution of copper (II) sulfate, sodium carbonate, and sodium citrate that reduces the copper (II) ions to copper (I) ions when heated with a reducing sugar, forming a red, orange, or green precipitate of copper (I) oxide. ⁴

Choice C rationale: Biuret is a reagent used to test for proteins and polypeptides. It is a blue solution of copper (II) sulfate and sodium hydroxide that forms a violet or pink complex with the peptide bonds in proteins or peptides. ⁸

Choice D rationale: Phenol red is a pH indicator. It is a red solution that changes color from yellow to red over the pH range 6.8 to 8.2, and from pink to fuchsia over 8.2 to 10.0. It does not react with sugars. ¹¹

Choice E rationale: Iodine is a reagent used to test for starch. It is a brown solution of iodine and potassium iodide that forms a blue-black complex with the starch molecules. It does not react with simple sugars. ¹⁴

Choice A rationale: The solute concentration of the cytoplasm inside the cell is correct because tonicity is a measure of how the solution affects the movement of water across the cell membrane by osmosis. Osmosis is the process by which water moves from a region of high water concentration to a region of low water concentration. The water concentration of a solution is determined by the solute concentration of the solution. The higher the solute concentration, the lower the water concentration, and vice versa. Therefore, tonicity compares the solute concentration of the solution outside the cell to the solute concentration of the cytoplasm inside the cell.

Choice B rationale: The permeability of the cell membrane is incorrect because permeability is a property of the cell membrane that determines how easily molecules can pass through it, not a measure of tonicity. The cell membrane is selectively permeable, meaning that it allows some molecules to cross, but not others. The cell membrane is permeable to water, but not to most solutes.

Choice C rationale: The swelling of the cell is incorrect because swelling is a result of tonicity, not a measure of it. Swelling occurs when a cell is placed in a hypotonic solution, which has a higher concentration of water and lower concentration of solute than the cell. In a hypotonic solution, water moves into the cell and out of the solution by osmosis, causing the cell to swell.

Choice D rationale: The number of cell fragments inside the cell is incorrect because cell fragments are pieces of broken cells that have no relation to tonicity. Cell fragments can be produced by mechanical damage, apoptosis, or necrosis, but they do not affect the solute concentration of the cytoplasm or the solution.

Choice E rationale: The presence of a cell wall is incorrect because the cell wall is a structure that surrounds the cell membrane in some cells, such as plant cells, but it does not affect tonicity. The cell wall is made of cellulose, a polysaccharide that is resistant to water. The cell wall provides mechanical support and prevents the cell from bursting in a hypotonic solution, but it does not change the solute concentration of the cytoplasm or the solution.