Jean-Baptiste Lamark proposed that changes in the traits of a population are a result of traits acquired during the lifetime of an organism being inherited by that organism's offspring. What is wrong with this proposal?
A)Only changes in the DNA sequence of an organism can be inherited. Traits acquired throughout life generally do not involve DNA.
B)The environment chooses which traits are necessary for survival rather than the individual.
C)Changes in a species occur at the individual level rather than the population level.
D)The inheritance of acquired traits would not lead to speciation because it would cause all of the individuals in a population to become more similar.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Traits acquired during an organism's lifetime generally do not involve changes to its DNA sequence, and therefore cannot be passed on to offspring through genetic inheritance. Lamarck's proposal is inconsistent with the principles of modern genetics, which show that only genetic mutations that occur in the DNA sequence of an organism's germ cells (sperm or egg cells) can be passed on to offspring.

Jean-Baptiste Lamark Proposed That Changes in the Traits of a Population