Question

Which of the following is NOT a direct conclusion to be drawn from Mendel's experiments?

• A. Only one parental trait is expressed.
• B. Two copies of each trait are inherited in sexually reproducing organsisms.
• C. For recessive trait to be expressed, both copies should be identical.
• D. Natural selection can alter the frequencies of an inherited trait.

Answer 1

The correct option is D Natural selection can alter the frequencies of an inherited trait.

From Mendel's experiments and the laws he formulated, it is clear that,

1. In every organism, two copies of a gene, called alleles, control a single trait.

2. When two parents, homozygous for a character, are crossed, in the F1 generation only one parental character is observed and that is the dominant character.

3. For a recessive character to appear, it has to be in homozygous state e.g. tt (short plant) or rr (wrinkled seed).

The fourth statement, natural selection can alter the frequencies of an inherited character, is true with repsect to theories of evolution and is not a direct conclusion of Mendellian experiments.