Chapter 3 Genetics Practice [50 

marks]

1. [1 mark]
The table shows the estimated total number of genes in several organisms.

What can be deduced from the information in this table?

A. Throughout evolution, the number of genes increases.
B. The domestic dog is more closely genetically related to the fruit fly than to the human.
C. The number of genes does not determine evolutionary success.
D. Humans produce about half as many proteins as rice.
2. [1 mark]
What is produced by meiosis in a cell of a male animal?
A. Four gametes, each with the same number of chromosomes
B. Two gametes, each with the same number of chromosomes
C. Four gametes, each with different numbers of chromosomes
D. Two gametes, each with different numbers of chromosomes
3. [1 mark]
Huntington’s disease is an autosomal dominant genetic disease. What are the chances of two
parents that are heterozygous for the gene having a child with Huntington’s disease?
A. 25 %
B. 50 %
C. 75 %
D. 100 %
4. [1 mark]
The karyogram shown belongs to a human being.

 
What can be deduced from this karyogram?
A. The person is a male with Down syndrome.
B. The person is a female with Down syndrome.
C. The person is a male with a genetic disorder.
D. The person is a female with a missing chromosome.
5. [1 mark]
The pedigree chart shows the inheritance of hemochromatosis, a genetic disease which causes an
excessive accumulation of iron in the body.

 
What can be deduced about this genetic disease from the pedigree chart?
A. It is sex-linked.
B. It is autosomal dominant.
C. It is autosomal co-dominant.
D. It is autosomal recessive.
6. [1 mark]
A cloning method used for livestock involves in vitro fertilization (IVF) with selected male and
female gametes. The diagram shows the steps followed after in vitro fertilization.

 
What does X represent?
A. A group of eggs
B. An embryo
C. A follicle
D. A group of zygotes
7. [1 mark]
Which process occurs in meiosis but not in mitosis?
A. Attachment of spindle fibres to the centromeres of each chromosome
B. Movement of homologous chromosomes to opposite ends
C. Replication of DNA prior to the start of cell division
D. Separation of sister chromatids during anaphase
8. [1 mark]
John Cairns used the technique of autoradiography to produce
photographs of DNA from the bacterium E. coli.

 
Which conclusion was drawn from his experiments?
A. The DNA in all organisms is circular.
B. DNA in E. coli naturally contains thymidine.
C. DNA replication is conservative.
D. The DNA in E. coli is 900 μm in length.

9. [1 mark]
Down syndrome can be detected before birth by chorionic villus sampling. From where are the
cells for this test taken?
A. Amniotic fluid surrounding the fetus
B. Fetal digestive system
C. Tissue in the placenta
D. Lining of the uterus of the mother

10. [1 mark]
The image shows the result of DNA profiling of a mother, a child and four men. Which man is
most probably the father of the child?
11. [1 mark]
Which genotype would be normally found in a gamete?
A. Rr
B. RS
C. rStt
D. TUt
12. [1 mark]
A woman with blood type A has three children with a man who has blood type AB. The first child
has blood type B. What is the probability that the second child born to the couple will have blood
type AB?
A. 0.75
B. 0.50
C. 0.25
D. 0.00
13. [1 mark]
What is a feature of the human genome?
A. Plasmids
B. Messenger RNA
C. Transfer RNA
D. Mitochondrial DNA
14. [1 mark]
In the pedigree chart, individuals affected
by a genetic disease are shown as shaded
symbols. Squares represent males and
circles females.
 
What is the mode of inheritance of the
genetic disease?
A. Inherited as a dominant autosomal allele
B. Inherited as a recessive autosomal allele
C. Inherited as a recessive sex-linked allele
D. Inherited as a dominant sex-linked allele
15. [1 mark]
Tall heterozygous pea plants were crossed and the resulting seeds grown. Out of 360 plants, 270
were tall and 90 dwarf. What describes the expected genotypes resulting from the cross?
A. All 270 tall plants were heterozygous.
B. All 270 tall plants were homozygous.
C. Only 90 plants were homozygous.
D. All dwarf plants were homozygous.
16. [1 mark]
What are all the possible phenotypes of children born to a mother with blood group AB and a
father with blood group A?
A. AB only
B. A and B
C. AB, A and B
D. AB, A and O
17a.
The pedigree chart shows the incidence of hemophilia in some of the descendants of Queen
Victoria.

State the probability that Edward had hemophilia. [1 mark]

17b. [3 marks]
Explain the reasons for none of the females in the pedigree chart having hemophilia.
18a.
Organisms often release chemicals when attacked as
part of their defence system. Scientists studied lima
bean plants (Phaseolus lunatus) infested with either an
armyworm, Spodoptera exigua, or a herbivorous mite,
Tetranychus urticae. Both organisms feed on lima bean
leaves, causing the leaves to release chemicals.
The study was conducted to see which defence
chemicals were produced by lima bean leaves when
infested by armyworms or herbivorous mites. The
scientists identified a mixture of compounds (C) released by the plant when attacked. Two of the
chemicals in this mixture were identified (C1 and C2).
The scientists hypothesized that the defence chemicals in C act as signals to produce other
chemicals (X, Y and Z) that are also involved in the defence of the plant.
 
The graphs show the amounts of chemicals X, Y and Z produced when the plants were infested by
either one of the two herbivores or treated with the different chemicals C1 or C2.
Distinguish between the data for the leaves infested with the armyworm and the leaves infested
with the herbivorous mite. [3 marks]

18b. Compare and contrast the effects of treatment of the leaves using C1 and C2 with the effects
of infestation. [3 marks

18c. RNA was collected from leaves of the plants after each treatment (armyworm, herbivorous
mite and the chemicals C1 and C2). DNA copies of the extracted RNA were made by a process
called reverse transcription. Targeted genes in the DNA were then amplified.
Identify the process that was used to amplify the targeted genes. 1 mark

18d. The scientists then used the transcribed DNA of each treatment to study the activation of
three genes of the plants’ defence system. The DNA was separated by gel electrophoresis. The
activation was tested one hour after treatment and again after 24 hours.

Deduce, with a reason, which gene is first transcribed when exposed to C2. 1 mark
18e. Each gene is activated by one or more of the treatments. From the gel electrophoresis data,
discuss the impact of the herbivorous mite infestation on gene activation compared to treatment
with C1 and C2. [3 marks]

18f. Using the gene activation data, deduce, giving two reasons, whether the armyworm or the
herbivorous mite has infested lima bean plants over a longer period of time. [2 marks]

19. People with the inherited disease hemophilia have a deficiency in one of the proteins that act
as clotting factors in blood.
A family has a history of hemophilia that is caused by a sex-linked recessive allele. A woman from
this family is a carrier and marries a man who does not have the allele. Showing your working,
determine the probability of their children having the disease. . [3 marks]

20. Distinguish between the processes of meiosis and mitosis. [5 marks]

21. Describe how DNA profiling can be used to establish paternity. [5 marks]

22. Outline the inheritance of blood types in the ABO blood system in humans. [4 marks].