Question

What base is responsible for hot spots for spontaneous point mutations?

• A. Adenine
• B. Guanine
• C. 5 - bromouracil
• D. 5 - methyl cytosine

Answer 1

The correct option is C 5 - bromouracil

• Point mutations are the mutations that occur at a single site in the gene.
• There is an addition, substitutions or deletions of the single base in the gene sequence. 5 - bromouracil acts as a mutagen.
• There is some sort of specificity shown by the mutagen for the sites. These mutational sites are called as hotspots. The 5 - bromouracil acts as an analog of thymine.
• They have bromine at the site of 5${}^{th}$ carbon where there is CH${}_3$ in thymine. This mutagen can form bonds with the adenine and cause mutations very frequently.

Thus, the correct answer is option C.