GATE Life Science Syllabus 2023 – XL Chapters, Topics, Latest Changes

GATE Life Science Syllabus 2023: Check out the latest GATE Syllabus for Life Science (XL). Life Science subject is one of the papers in the GATE 2022 Exam. Earlier we’ve provided the GATE Exam pattern 2022, Now we are providing GATE Syllabus for Life Science Paper 2022. XL is the subject code of the GATE Life Science Exam. Below we’ve provided the GATE Syllabus for Life Science and weight-age for the GATE 2022 Exam. Here you can see Life Science applicable chapters and topics for GATE exam 2022.

GATE Paper Pattern & Marks Weightage

GATE paper questions are divided into three sections. As given below GATE marks are distributed for each section. 70% of the marks cover the core subject of the GATE Exam. i.e here Core Subject is Aerospace Engineering.

GATE 2022
Paper Pattern for Life Science (XL)

GATE Paper Sections	GATE Marks Distribution
Subject Questions (Core Subject)	70% of the total marks.
Engineering Mathematics	15% of the total marks.
General Aptitude (GA)	15% of the total marks.

GATE Life Science Syllabus 2023 (GATE XL Paper)

The GATE exam will also have a General Aptitude section. The General Aptitude section is common for all papers. You can download the GATE 2022 Syllabus for General Aptitude (GA) in PDF and GATE Syllabus for Life Science also or you can check

GATE General Aptitude (GA) Syllabus (Full Details)

GATE XL 2022 Syllabus pdf

GATE Syllabus for Life Science (XL)

General Aptitude Syllabus (Common to all papers)	Download
GATE Syllabus for Life Science (XL)	Download

Also, Download the Syllabus PDF of

Section P: Chemistry (Compulsory)

Atomic structure and periodicity: Planck’s quantum theory, wave-particle duality, uncertainty principle, quantum mechanical model of the hydrogen atom, electronic configuration of atoms and ions. Periodic table and periodic properties: ionization energy, electron affinity, electronegativity and atomic size.

Structure and bonding: Ionic and covalent bonding, MO and VB approach for diatomic molecules, VSEPR theory, and shape of molecules, hybridization, resonance, dipole moment, structure parameters such as bond length, bond angle and bond energy, hydrogen bonding, and van der Waals interactions. Ionic solids, ionic radii, and lattice energy (Born‐Haber Cycle). HSAB principle.

s.p. and d Block Elements: Oxides, halides, and hydrides of alkali, alkaline earth metals, B, Al, Si, N, P, and S. General characteristics of 3d elements. Coordination complexes: valence bond and crystal field theory, color, geometry, magnetic properties, and isomerism.

Chemical Equilibria: Colligative properties of solutions, ionic equilibria in solution, solubility product, common ion effect, hydrolysis of salts, pH, buffer and their applications. Equilibrium constants (K_c, K_p, and K_x) for homogeneous reactions.

Electrochemistry: Conductance, Kohlrausch law, cell potentials, emf, Nernst equation, Galvanic cells, thermodynamic aspects, and their applications.

Reaction Kinetics: Rate constant, order of reaction, molecularity, activation energy, zero, first and second-order kinetics, catalysis, and elementary enzyme reactions.

Thermodynamics: First law, reversible and irreversible processes, internal energy, enthalpy, Kirchoff equation, heat of reaction, Hess’s law, heat of formation. A second law, entropy, free energy, and work function. Gibbs‐Helmholtz equation, Clausius‐Clapeyron equation, free energy change, equilibrium constant and Trouton’s rule. Third law of thermodynamics

Structure-Reactivity Correlations and Organic Reaction Mechanisms: Acids and bases, electronic and steric effects, optical and geometrical isomerism, tautomerism, conformers, and concept of aromaticity. Elementary treatment of S_N1, S_N2, E1 and E2 reactions, Hoffmann and Saytzeff rules, addition reactions, Markownikoff rule, and Kharash effect. Aromatic electrophilic substitutions, orientation effect as exemplified by various functional groups. Diels‐Alder, Wittig and hydroboration reactions. Identification of functional groups by chemical tests.

Section Q: Biochemistry

Organization of life; Importance of water; Structure and function of biomolecules: Amino acids, Carbohydrates, Lipids, Proteins, and Nucleic acids; Protein structure, folding and function: Myoglobin, Hemoglobin, Lysozyme, Ribonuclease A, Carboxypeptidase and Chymotrypsin.
Enzyme kinetics including its regulation and inhibition, Vitamins and Coenzymes ; Metabolism and bioenergetics; Generation and utilization of ATP; Metabolic pathways and their regulation: glycolysis, TCA cycle, pentose phosphate pathway, oxidative phosphorylation,gluconeogenesis, glycogen, and fatty acid metabolism; Metabolism of Nitrogen-containing compounds: nitrogen fixation, amino acids, and nucleotides. Photosynthesis: Calvin cycle.
Biochemical separation techniques: ion exchange, size exclusion, and affinity chromatography, Characterization of biomolecules by electrophoresis, UV-visible and fluorescence spectroscopy, and Mass spectrometry.
Cell structure and organelles; Biological membranes; Transport across membranes; Signal transduction; Hormones and neurotransmitters.
DNA replication, transcription, and translation; Biochemical regulation of gene expression; Recombinant DNA technology and applications: PCR, site-directed mutagenesis and DNA-microarray.
Immune system: Active and passive immunity; Complement system; Antibody structure, function, and diversity; Cells of the immune system: T, B and macrophages; T and B cell activation; Major histocompatibilty complex; T cell receptor; Immunological techniques: Immunodiffusion, immunoelectrophoresis, RIA and ELISA.

Section R: Botany

Plant Systematics: Major systems of classification, plant groups, phylogenetic relationships, and molecular systematics.

Plant Anatomy: Plant cell structure and its components; cell wall and membranes; organization, organelles, cytoskeleton, anatomy of root, stem, and leaves, floral parts, embryo, and young seedlings, meristems, vascular system, their ontogeny, structure, and functions, secondary growth in plants and stellar organization.

Morphogenesis & Development: Life cycle of an angiosperm, development of male and female gametophyte; cell fate determination
and tissue patterning; spacing mechanisms in trichomes and stomata. Embryogenesis, organization and function of shoot and root apical meristems. Transition to flowering: photoperiodism and vernalization, ABC model of floral organ patterning, pollen germination, double fertilization, seed
development; Xylem and phloem cell differentiation, photomorphogenesis; phytochrome, cryptochrome, phototropin. Role of auxin, cytokinin, gibberellins, and brassinosteroids on plant development.

Physiology and Biochemistry: Plant water relations, transport of minerals and solutes, stress physiology, stomatal physiology, signal transduction, N₂ metabolism, photosynthesis, photorespiration; respiration, Flowering: photoperiodism and vernalization, biochemical mechanisms involved in flowering; molecular mechanism of senescence and aging, biosynthesis, mechanism of action and physiological effects of plant growth regulators, structure and function of biomolecules, (proteins, carbohydrates, lipids, nucleic acid), enzyme kinetics

Genetics: Principles of Mendelian inheritance, linkage, recombination, genetic mapping; extrachromosomal inheritance; prokaryotic and eukaryotic genome organization, regulation of gene expression, gene mutation, and repair, chromosomal aberrations (numerical and structural), transposons.

Plant Breeding and Genetic Modification: Principles, methods – selection, hybridization, heterosis; male sterility, genetic maps and molecular markers, sporophytic and gametophytic self-incompatibility, haploidy, triploidy, somatic cell hybridization, marker-assisted selection, gene transfer methods viz. direct and vector-mediated, plastid transformation, transgenic plants and their application in agriculture, molecular pharming, plantibodies.

Economic Botany: A general account of economically and medicinally important plants- cereals, pulses, plants yielding fibers, timber, sugar, beverages, oils, rubber, pigments, dyes, gums, drugs, and narcotics. Economic importance of algae, fungi, lichen, and bacteria.

Plant Pathology: Nature and classification of plant diseases, diseases of important crops caused by fungi, bacteria, nematodes, and viruses, and their control measures, the mechanism(s) of pathogenesis and resistance, molecular detection of pathogens; plant-microbe beneficial interactions.

Ecology and Environment: Ecosystems – types, dynamics, degradation, ecological succession; food chains and energy flow; vegetation types of the world, pollution and global warming, speciation, and extinction, conservation strategies, cryopreservation, phytoremediation.

Section S: Microbiology

Historical Perspective: Discovery of microbial world; Landmark discoveries relevant to the field of microbiology; Controversy over a spontaneous generation; Role of microorganisms in transformation of organic matter and in the causation of diseases.

Methods in Microbiology: Pure culture techniques; Theory and practice of sterilization; Principles of microbial nutrition; Enrichment culture techniques for isolation of microorganisms; Light-, phase contrast- and electron-microscopy.

Microbial Taxonomy and Diversity: Bacteria, Archea, and their broad classification; Eukaryotic microbes: Yeasts, molds, and protozoa; Viruses and their classification; Molecular approaches to microbial taxonomy.

Prokaryotic and Eukaryotic Cells: Structure and Function: Prokaryotic Cells: cell walls, cell membranes, mechanisms of solute transport across membranes, Flagella and Pili, Capsules, Cell inclusions like endospores and gas vesicles; Eukaryotic cell organelles: Endoplasmic reticulum, Golgi apparatus, mitochondria, and chloroplasts.

Microbial Growth: Definition of growth; Growth curve; Mathematical expression of exponential growth phase; Measurement of growth and growth yields; Synchronous growth; Continuous culture; Effect of environmental factors on growth.

Control of Micro-organisms: Effect of physical and chemical agents; Evaluation of the effectiveness of antimicrobial agents.

Microbial Metabolism: Energetics: redox reactions and electron carriers; An overview of metabolism; Glycolysis; Pentose-phosphate pathway; Entner-Doudoroff pathway; Glyoxalate pathway; The citric acid cycle; Fermentation; Aerobic and anaerobic respiration; Chemolithotrophy; Photosynthesis; Calvin cycle; Biosynthetic pathway for fatty acids synthesis; Common regulatory mechanisms in the synthesis of amino acids; Regulation of major metabolic pathways.

Microbial Diseases and Host-Pathogen Interaction: Normal microbiota; Classification of infectious diseases; Reservoirs of infection; Nosocomial infection; Emerging infectious diseases; Mechanism of microbial pathogenicity; Nonspecific defense of host; Antigens and antibodies; Humoral and cell-mediated immunity; Vaccines; Immune deficiency; Human diseases caused by viruses, bacteria, and pathogenic fungi.

Chemotherapy/Antibiotics: General characteristics of antimicrobial drugs; Antibiotics: Classification, mode of action and resistance; Antifungal and antiviral drugs.

Microbial Genetics: Types of mutation; UV and chemical mutagens; Selection of mutants; Ames test for mutagenesis; Bacterial genetic system: transformation, conjugation, transduction, recombination, plasmids, transposons; DNA repair; Regulation of gene expression: repression and induction; Operon model; Bacterial genome with special reference to E.coli; Phage λ and its life cycle; RNA phages; RNA viruses; Retroviruses; Basic concept of microbial genomics.

Microbial Ecology: Microbial interactions; Carbon, sulphur, and nitrogen cycles; Soil microorganisms associated with vascular plants.

Section T: Zoology

Animal world: Animal diversity, distribution, systematics and classification of animals, phylogenetic relationships.

Evolution: Origin and history of life on earth, theories of evolution, natural selection, adaptation, speciation.

Genetics: Basic Principles of inheritance, the molecular basis of heredity, sex determination, and sex-linked characteristics, cytoplasmic inheritance, linkage, recombination and mapping of genes in eukaryotes, population genetics.

Biochemistry and Molecular Biology: Nucleic acids, proteins, lipids and carbohydrates; replication, transcription and translation; regulation of gene expression, organization of genome, Kreb’s cycle, glycolysis, enzyme catalysis, hormones, and their actions, vitamins

Cell Biology: Structure of cell, cellular organelles and their structure and function, cell cycle, cell division, chromosomes and chromatin structure.

Gene expression in Eukaryotes: Eukaryotic gene organization and expression (Basic principles of signal transduction).

Animal Anatomy and Physiology: Comparative physiology, the respiratory system, circulatory system, digestive system, the nervous system, the excretory system, the endocrine system, the reproductive system, the skeletal system, osmoregulation.

Parasitology and Immunology: Nature of parasite, host-parasite relation, protozoan and helminthic parasites, the immune response, cellular and humoral immune response, evolution of the immune system.

Development Biology: Embryonic development, cellular differentiation, organogenesis, metamorphosis, the genetic basis of development, stem cells.

Ecology: The ecosystem, habitats, the food chain, population dynamics, species diversity, zoogeography, biogeochemical cycles, conservation biology.

Animal Behaviour: Types of behaviors, courtship, mating and territoriality, instinct, learning and memory, social behavior across the animal taxa, communication, pheromones, evolution of animal behavior.

Section U: Food Technology

Food Chemistry and Nutrition: Carbohydrates: structure and functional properties of mono-, oligo-, & polysaccharides including starch, cellulose, pectic substances, and dietary fiber, gelatinization, and retrogradation of starch. Proteins: classification and structure of proteins in food, biochemical changes in post mortem, and tenderization of muscles. Lipids: Classification and structure of lipids, rancidity, polymerization, and polymorphism. Pigments: carotenoids, chlorophylls, anthocyanins, tannins, and myoglobin. Food flavors: terpenes, esters, aldehydes, ketones, and quinines. Enzymes: specificity, simple and inhibition kinetics, coenzymes, enzymatic and nonenzymatic browning. Nutrition: balanced diet, essential amino acids, and essential fatty acids, protein efficiency ratio, water-soluble and fat-soluble vitamins, the role of minerals in nutrition, co-factors, anti-nutrients, nutraceuticals, nutrient deficiency diseases. Chemical and biochemical c hanges: changes occur in foods during different processing.

Food Microbiology: Characteristics of microorganisms: morphology of bacteria, yeast, mold and actinomycetes, spores and vegetative cells, gram-staining. Microbial growt h: growth and death kinetics, serial dilution technique. Food spoilage: spoilage microorganisms in different food products including milk, fish, meat, egg, cereals, and their products. Toxins from microbes: pathogens and non-pathogens including Staphylococcus, Salmonella, Shigella, Escherichia, Bacillus, Clostridium, and Aspergillus genera. Fermented foods and beverages: curd, yoghurt, cheese, pickles, soya-sauce, sauerkraut, idli, dosa, vinegar, alcoholic beverages and sausage.

Food Products Technology: Processing principles: thermal processing, chilling, freezing, dehydration, the addition of preservatives and food additives, irradiation, fermentation, hurdle technology, intermediate moisture foods. Food pack aging and storage: packaging materials, aseptic packaging, controlled and modified atmosphere storage. Cereal processing and products: milling of rice, wheat, and maize, parboiling of paddy, bread, biscuits, extruded products, and ready-to-eat breakfast cereals. Oil processing: expelling, solvent extraction, refining, and hydrogenation. Fruits a nd vegetables p rocessing: extraction, clarification, concentration and packaging of fruit juice, jam, jelly, marmalade, squash, candies, tomato sauce, ketchup, and puree, potato chips, pickles. Plantation crops processing and products: tea, coffee, cocoa, spice, extraction of essential oils and oleoresins from spices. Milk and milk products processing: pasteurization and sterilization, cream, butter, ghee, ice cream, cheese, and milk powder. Processing of animal products: drying, canning, and freezing of fish and meat; production of egg powder. Waste utilization: pectin from fruit wastes, uses of by-products from rice milling. Food standards and qu ality maintenance: FPO, PFA, Agmark, ISI, HACCP, food plant sanitation, and cleaning in place (CIP).

Food Engineering: Mass and energy balance; Momentum transfer: Flow rate and pressure drop relationships for Newtonian fluids flowing through a pipe, Reynolds number. Heat transfer: heat transfer by conduction, convection, radiation, heat exchangers. Mass transfer: molecular diffusion and Fick’s law, conduction and convective mass transfer, permeability through single and multilayer films. Mechanical operations: size reduction of solids, high-pressure homogenization, filtration, centrifugation, settling, sieving, mixing & agitation of liquid. Thermal operations: thermal sterilization, evaporation of liquid foods, hot air drying of solids, spray and freeze-drying, freezing, and crystallization. Mass transfer oper ations: psychrometry, humidification, and dehumidification operations.

This article provides you with the GATE Engineering Sciences Syllabus 2023 and students can also download the syllabus pdf available through our blog. Share this article with your friends.