Cambridge IELTS 14 · Academic · Test 3 · Passage 2
Saving Bugs To Find New Drugs — IELTS Reading Answers
All 12 answers for Saving Bugs To Find New Drugs, Cambridge IELTS 14 Academic Reading Test 3 Passage 2, with the passage evidence and an explanation for each.
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Saving Bugs To Find New Drugs answer key at a glance
Questions 14–26. Tap an answer to see the evidence.
What this passage tests
This passage is tested with Matching Information (Q14–20), Two Choices (Q21–22), Summary Completion (Q23–26). Each section below gives the strategy for that question type, the answers, and the sentence that proves them.
Questions 14–20: Matching Information
Strategy: Scan for the idea, not the exact words. The answer is a paragraph letter, and one paragraph may be used more than once unless the instructions say otherwise.
mention of factors driving a renewed interest in natural medicinal compounds.
“This realization, together with several looming health crises, such as antibiotic resistance, has put bioprospecting – the search for useful compounds in nature – firmly back on the map.”
C: paragraph C blames 'looming health crises, such as antibiotic resistance' for putting bioprospecting 'firmly back on the map'.
how recent technological advances have made insect research easier
“it is now possible to snip out the stretches of the insect’s DNA that carry the codes for the interesting compounds and insert them into cell lines that allow larger quantities to be produced.”
H: paragraph H explains scientists can 'snip out the stretches of the insect's DNA' and insert them into cell lines, making research easier.
examples of animals which use medicinal substances from nature
“the capuchin monkeys who rub themselves with toxin-oozing millipedes to deter mosquitoes, or the chimpanzees who use noxious forest plants to rid themselves of intestinal parasites”
A: paragraph A cites capuchin monkeys rubbing themselves with millipedes and chimpanzees using plants against intestinal parasites.
reasons why it is challenging to use insects in drug research
“Why is it that insects have received relatively little attention in bioprospecting? Firstly, there are so many insects that, without some manner of targeted approach, investigating this huge variety of species is a daunting task.”
F: paragraph F explains that 'there are so many insects' that investigating this variety 'is a daunting task'.
reference to how interest in drug research may benefit wildlife
“my main motivation for looking at insects in this way is conservation. I sincerely believe that all species, however small and seemingly insignificant, have a right to exist for their own sake.”
I: paragraph I says 'my main motivation for looking at insects in this way is conservation', linking drug research to protecting species.
a reason why nature-based medicines fell out of favour for a period
“modern pharmaceutical science moved its focus away from nature and into the laboratory, designing chemical compounds from scratch. The main cause of this shift is that although there are plenty of promising chemical compounds in nature, finding them is far from easy.”
B: paragraph B explains pharmaceutical science 'moved its focus away from nature and into the laboratory', because finding natural compounds is hard.
an example of an insect-derived medicine in use at the moment
“For example, alloferon, an antimicrobial compound produced by blow fly larvae, is used as an antiviral and antitumor agent in South Korea and Russia”
E: paragraph E gives alloferon, from blow fly larvae, 'used as an antiviral and antitumor agent in South Korea and Russia'.
Questions 21–22: Two Choices
Strategy: Both answers must be supported by the passage. Check each option independently; order does not usually matter.
“they have a bewildering array of interactions with other organisms, something which has driven the evolution of an enormous range of very interesting compounds for defensive and offensive purposes it is now possible to snip out the stretches of the insect’s DNA that carry the codes for the interesting compounds and...”
B fits because insects' many interactions evolved 'an enormous range of very interesting compounds'; C because DNA techniques allow 'larger quantities to be produced'.
Questions 23–26: Summary Completion
Strategy: Read the summary as a paragraph first to establish the logic, then locate the missing idea in the passage. With a lettered list, confirm the grammar fits.
“My colleagues and I at Aberystwyth University in the UK have developed an approach in which we use our knowledge of ecology as a guide to target our efforts”
Aberystwyth researchers 'use our knowledge of ecology as a guide to target our efforts', so ecology is the guiding subject.
“The creatures that particularly interest us are the many insects that secrete powerful poison for subduing prey and keeping it fresh for future consumption”
Insects secrete poison 'for subduing prey and keeping it fresh for future consumption', so prey is what they subdue.
“There are even more insects that are masters of exploiting filthy habitats, such as faeces and carcasses, where they are regularly challenged by thousands of micro-organisms. These insects have many antimicrobial compounds for dealing with pathogenic bacteria and fungi”
Insects are 'masters of exploiting filthy habitats, such as faeces and carcasses', the environments the summary mentions.
“there is certainly potential to find many compounds that can serve as or inspire new antibiotics”
The passage sees potential for compounds that 'can serve as or inspire new antibiotics', the medicines the gap requires.
Learn the question types in this passage
Frequently asked questions
Where does the Saving Bugs To Find New Drugs passage come from?
It is Passage 2 of Cambridge IELTS 14 Academic Reading Test 3, and it covers Questions 14–26.
What question types appear in Saving Bugs To Find New Drugs?
The passage is tested with Matching Information, Two Choices, Summary Completion. Each type is explained on this page, alongside the answers.
Are these reading answers reliable?
Every answer is paired with the sentence that proves it, so you can check each one against the passage yourself. Use the page after a timed attempt, not instead of one.
Cambridge IELTS is published by Cambridge University Press & Assessment. Band9Prep is not affiliated with Cambridge. This page is an independent study aid: it gives the answer key, the passage evidence and an explanation so you can review an attempt you have already made.