If you inherited an allele for blue eyes from your mother and an allele for brown eyes from your father, you are
A) tetraploid
B) homozygous
C) haploid
D) heterozygous
I got D marked wrong, I'm so confused. Thanks.
The correct answer to your question is D) heterozygous.
To understand why this is the correct choice, let's break down the given information. You inherited an allele for blue eyes from your mother and an allele for brown eyes from your father.
In genetics, alleles are alternate forms of a gene that occupy the same position (locus) on a chromosome. Each individual has two copies of each gene, one from their mother and one from their father, which is why you have an allele from each parent for the eye color gene.
Homozygous refers to having two identical alleles for a particular gene. For example, if both of your alleles for eye color were blue, you would be homozygous for blue eyes. However, in this case, you have an allele for blue eyes from your mother and an allele for brown eyes from your father, which means you have different alleles for the same gene. Therefore, you are not homozygous.
Haploid refers to having a single set of chromosomes, typically found in reproductive cells (sperm and eggs). Since you normally inherit two sets of chromosomes, one from each parent, you are not haploid.
Tetraploid refers to having four sets of chromosomes, which is not relevant in this scenario. Humans, like most animals, are diploid, meaning they have two sets of chromosomes.
Therefore, the correct choice is D) heterozygous, as it accurately describes having different alleles for the same gene (blue eyes and brown eyes alleles).