Which term describes a variant form of a gene?

Which term describes a variant form of a gene?

• A. Homozygous
• B. Heterozygous
• C. Allele
• D. Genome

Answer: (C)

Allele is a variant form of a gene that exists at a specific location on a chromosome. Different alleles can produce different versions of a trait, and an individual has two alleles for each gene—one inherited from each parent. When both alleles are the same, the organism is homozygous for that gene; when they differ, it is heterozygous. The genome, by contrast, is the entire set of genetic material of the organism. Therefore, the term that describes a variant form of a gene is allele.

Allele is a variant form of a gene that exists at a specific location on a chromosome. Different alleles can produce different versions of a trait, and an individual has two alleles for each gene—one inherited from each parent. When both alleles are the same, the organism is homozygous for that gene; when they differ, it is heterozygous. The genome, by contrast, is the entire set of genetic material of the organism. Therefore, the term that describes a variant form of a gene is allele.