Cell division mitosis and meiosis

Practice Question Solving
1

The presence of starch in maize pollen grains is controlled by one allele of a particular gene. The other allele results in the absence of starch.

Why do half the pollen grains of a heterozygous maize plant contain starch?
Because alleles separate at meiosis during

A anaphase I and anaphase II.

B metaphase I and anaphase I.

C metaphase II and anaphase II.

D prophase I and prophase II.

Answer is A.

Guys help me

2

The only stages where “alleles are separated in meiosis” are during anaphase I and anaphase II. You can get a big hint from the question.

  1. Alleles separate during Anaphase I:
  • During Anaphase I of meiosis, homologous chromosomes are separated and pulled to opposite poles of the cell.
  • This separation results in the segregation of alleles for different traits, as each homologous chromosome carries different alleles for the same genes.
  • This step ensures that each daughter cell produced in Meiosis I receives one allele from each gene for each trait.
  1. Alleles separate during Anaphase II:
  • In Meiosis II, which consists of two divisions similar to mitosis, the sister chromatids of each chromosome are separated.
  • This separation further ensures the segregation of alleles because each sister chromatid carries identical genetic information.
  • The separation of sister chromatids occurs during Anaphase II of meiosis.

So, alleles do indeed separate during both Anaphase I and Anaphase II of meiosis, ensuring the genetic diversity and haploid chromosome number in the resulting daughter cells.

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