Question 1

Louise's blue eyes and petite frame are observable characteristics and are part of her

Accepted Answer

Louise's blue eyes and petite frame are observable characteristics, or traits, which make up her phenotype. This is distinct from her genotype, which refers to the specific genetic information she inherited from her parents. Alleles are alternative forms of a gene that can influence a trait, and a genetic imprint is a specific type of marking on a gene that can affect how it is expressed.

Question 2

An individual's _____ consists of that individual's observable traits;an individual's _____ is his/her underlying genetic pattern.

Accepted Answer

The phenotype of an individual refers to the observable traits or characteristics, such as height, eye color, and hair color. The genotype, on the other hand, refers to the individual's genetic makeup or the set of genes in our DNA which is responsible for a particular trait.

Question 3

Permanent genetic alterations that may produce harmful characteristics are called

Accepted Answer

Permanent genetic alterations that may produce harmful characteristics are called mutations. Transmissions refer to the passing of traits from parent to offspring, dominant-recessive alterations refer to the expression of traits based on dominance or recessiveness, and selective alterations refer to the process of natural selection in which certain traits are favored in a population.

Question 4

John has hemophilia,a sex-linked,blood-clotting disorder transmitted by a recessive gene.Neither his mother nor his father has symptoms of this disease.What can we conclude about the genetic makeup of John's parents?

Accepted Answer

Since hemophilia is a recessive sex-linked disorder, it means that the affected gene is located on the X chromosome. John could only have acquired this disorder if he inherited the faulty gene from his mother because for males, they only receive one X chromosome from their mother. Since neither of John's parents have symptoms of hemophilia, his father does not have the faulty gene. Therefore, John's mother must be a carrier of hemophilia, meaning she has one normal X chromosome and one X chromosome with the faulty gene.

Question 5

Brooklyn has curly hair but carries a gene for straight hair.Her phenotype is

Accepted Answer

Brooklyn's phenotype is the observable trait, which in this case is her curly hair. While she may carry a gene for straight hair, it is not the trait that is currently being expressed. Therefore, the best choice is A, curly hair.

Question 6

Which birth defect afflicts African Americans more than it does other ethnic groups?

Accepted Answer

Sickle-cell anemia is a genetic blood disorder that affects the production of hemoglobin and is more common in individuals of African descent, as well as some individuals of Hispanic, Middle Eastern, and South Asian descent. It is less common in individuals of European or East Asian descent.

Question 7

Petra would like to replicate herself.However,she needs to realize that,although cloning can produce identical _____,it cannot produce identical _____.

Accepted Answer

Cloning can produce organisms with identical genotypes (genetic material) but environmental factors can alter the expression of genes, leading to differences in phenotypes (observable characteristics). Therefore, cloning can produce identical genotypes but not necessarily identical phenotypes.

Question 8

Melvin grew up near the Three Mile Island nuclear plant when the meltdown occurred.An analysis of his genetic material indicates changes that are consistent with radiation exposure.The term that describes such genetic or chromosomal alteration is called

Accepted Answer

The term that describes genetic or chromosomal alteration caused by factors such as radiation exposure is mutation. Therefore, the correct answer is A) mutation. The other choices (B) transmission, (C) transduction, and (D) selective alteration, do not accurately describe the type of alteration caused by radiation exposure.

Question 9

Suzanne has brown eyes but also carries a gene for blue eyes.Suzanne is _____ for the trait of eye color.

Accepted Answer

Suzanne is heterozygous for the trait of eye color because she carries a gene for both brown and blue eyes.

Question 10

Arnold underwent genetic testing to determine whether he has the gene for Huntington's disease.The test confirmed that he does have it.This is an example of transmission by _____ inheritance.

Accepted Answer

Huntington's disease is caused by a dominant gene, meaning that only one copy of the gene is needed to develop the disease. Therefore, if Arnold tested positive for the gene, he would have inherited it through dominant inheritance.

Question 11

When both parents carry an abnormal recessive gene,such as the gene for cystic fibrosis,each of their children has 1 chance in:

Accepted Answer

Each child has a 1 in 2 chance of being a carrier, as they can inherit one normal gene and one abnormal gene from the parents.

Question 12

Gerald suffers from hemophilia,a blood-clotting disorder.He understands that the gene responsible for this disorder is carried by females but usually affects only males.This is an example of _______ inheritance.

Accepted Answer

Sex-linked inheritance refers to a gene that is located on one of the sex chromosomes (usually the X chromosome) and is therefore more common in one sex than the other. Hemophilia is caused by a recessive gene on the X chromosome, so females can be carriers of the gene but are usually not affected by the disorder themselves. However, males only have one X chromosome and if they inherit the hemophilia gene, they will develop the disorder.

Question 13

Krystal was ill as a baby,and before she was a year old,she was diagnosed with _____,a genetic defect that causes thick mucus to clog the breathing passages and the digestive system.

Accepted Answer

Cystic fibrosis is a genetic defect that causes thick mucus to clog the breathing passages and the digestive system, making it difficult to breathe and digest food properly. Down syndrome is a genetic disorder caused by the presence of an extra chromosome and can cause developmental delays and intellectual disabilities. Neural tube defect refers to a group of birth defects that affect the brain, spinal cord, or their surrounding tissues. Huntington's disease is a genetic disorder that affects the nervous system and can cause involuntary movements, emotional disturbances, and cognitive decline.

Question 14

Which of the following statements best describes the concept of multifactorial transmission?

Accepted Answer

Multifactorial transmission refers to the interaction of multiple genes and environmental factors in determining a particular trait. This means that most psychological traits are not simply determined by one or two genes, but rather are influenced by a complex interplay of genetic and environmental factors. Option A is incorrect because psychological traits are not generally determined by a small number of genes. Option B is incorrect because multiple recessive genes can still be transmitted to offspring, even if they do not survive. Option D is incorrect because the expression of both dominant and recessive genes can be influenced by both hereditary and environmental factors.

Question 15

Which of the following is NOT true about epigenetics?

Accepted Answer

This statement is not true as epigenetic changes can be influenced by environmental factors and do not solely rely on hereditary factors.

Question 16

Baby Shanna has been diagnosed with Tay-Sachs disease.However,neither of her parents has shown symptoms of this disease.What can we conclude from this information?

Accepted Answer

Tay-Sachs disease is a recessive genetic disorder, meaning that to be affected, an individual must inherit two copies of the mutated gene, one from each parent. Since Shanna has the disease but her parents do not show symptoms, it indicates that both parents are carriers (heterozygous) for the Tay-Sachs gene, and Shanna inherited one defective gene from each parent, making her homozygous for the Tay-Sachs gene.

Question 17

The differential expression of certain genetic traits is known as

Accepted Answer

The differential expression of certain genetic traits is known as genome imprinting. This occurs when certain genes are expressed differently depending on whether they are inherited from the mother or father. This is due to epigenetic modifications that occur during gamete formation and can persist throughout the life of the individual.

Question 18

When the police ask you to give a description of an assailant and you say that she is tall with black,curly hair,you are describing the assailant's

Accepted Answer

The description of the assailant's physical characteristics, such as being tall with black, curly hair, is a description of her phenotype. Phenotype refers to an individual's observable characteristics, which are the result of both genetic and environmental factors. In this case, the description of the assailant's height and hair characteristics are part of her observable traits, or phenotype.

Question 19

A pattern of inheritance in which certain characteristics carried on the X chromosome inherited from the mother are transmitted differently to her male and female offspring is called ______ inheritance.

Accepted Answer

Sex-linked inheritance refers to the inheritance of genes located on the X or Y chromosome. In X-linked inheritance, the gene is carried on the X chromosome and is usually transmitted from mother to son. Sons inherit one X chromosome from their mother and one Y chromosome from their father, while daughters inherit one X chromosome from each parent. Therefore, the expression of the gene can be different in males and females.

Question 20

Sex-linked traits

Accepted Answer

Sex-linked traits are carried on the sex chromosomes, usually the X chromosome. Since females have two X chromosomes, they can carry the trait on one X chromosome without displaying it if the other chromosome has a dominant allele. In this case, males only have one X chromosome, so they will either express or not express the trait based on the allele they receive from their mother. Therefore, sex-linked traits are usually passed from mother to son, not from father to son as stated in option A. Option B is incorrect because females can display sex-linked traits if they have two copies of the recessive allele. Option D is incorrect because there is no specific dominance or recessiveness associated with sex-linked traits.

Quiz 3: Forming a New Life: Conception,heredity,and Environment