FCPS Part 1 Psychiatry MCQs by Subject: Biochemistry, Physiology & Forensic Medicine

Sample FCPS Part 1 Psychiatry MCQs from Biochemistry, Physiology, Microbiology and Forensic Medicine — together 435 questions, about a sixth of HighYield's Psychiatry bank, not yet covered by a dedicated post.

Anatomy, Pharmacology and Pathology already have a combined practice post for FCPS Part 1 Psychiatry. The other side of the basic-sciences component — Biochemistry (178 questions), Physiology (159), Microbiology (49) and Forensic Medicine (49) — together makes up about a sixth of the entire Psychiatry question bank and doesn't yet have one. Below is a sample set across all four.

Biochemistry

1. Which amino acid is the precursor for serotonin synthesis?

A) Tyrosine
B) Tryptophan ✅
C) Phenylalanine
D) Glutamate

2. Phenylketonuria results from a deficiency of which enzyme?

A) Phenylalanine hydroxylase ✅
B) Tyrosinase
C) Homogentisate oxidase
D) Branched-chain ketoacid dehydrogenase

Physiology

3. Degeneration of which neurotransmitter pathway is most classically linked to Parkinsonism?

A) Serotonergic
B) Dopaminergic ✅
C) Cholinergic
D) GABAergic

4. Which posterior pituitary hormone is most classically implicated in social bonding and attachment?

A) Vasopressin
B) Oxytocin ✅
C) Prolactin
D) Growth hormone

Microbiology

5. Untreated tertiary syphilis can cause general paresis with psychiatric symptoms. Which organism is responsible?

A) Treponema pallidum ✅
B) Neisseria gonorrhoeae
C) Borrelia burgdorferi
D) Leptospira interrogans

6. Which virus is the classic cause of acute encephalitis that can present with prominent psychiatric symptoms and temporal lobe involvement?

A) Herpes simplex virus ✅
B) Varicella zoster virus
C) Cytomegalovirus
D) Epstein-Barr virus

Forensic Medicine

7. The legal test for the insanity defence, asking whether the accused understood the nature of the act or knew it was wrong, is known as:

A) The Durham Rule
B) The M'Naghten Rules ✅
C) The Irresistible Impulse Test
D) The Model Penal Code Test

8. "Testamentary capacity" refers to a person's legal ability to:

A) Consent to surgery
B) Stand trial
C) Make or understand a valid will ✅
D) Manage their own finances

Prepare with HighYield

HighYield's FCPS Part 1 Psychiatry question bank covers all nine tested subjects — Psychiatry, Anatomy, Pharmacology, Pathology, Biochemistry, Physiology, Medicine, Microbiology and Forensic Medicine — with every question explained. For the exam's structure and duration, see our FCPS Psychiatry syllabus guide.