A pepper plant is heterozygous for a mutant allele of the gene encoding the CaSGR enzyme (one allele is wild type and the other is mutant). The mutant allele differs from the wild type one in that it lacks a large part of the promoter sequence. Predict the following & briefly explain each prediction.
What is the genotype of this plant and will it make any CaSGR enzyme? if so, will it be functional?
To predict the genotype and enzyme production of the heterozygous pepper plant, we need to understand the concept of heterozygosity and its effect on the expression of genes.
Heterozygosity refers to having different alleles (variants) for a specific gene. In this case, the pepper plant is heterozygous for the gene encoding the CaSGR enzyme. It has one wild type allele (normal version) and one mutant allele (with a deletion in the promoter sequence).
Based on this information, we can predict the following:
1. Genotype of the plant:
The genotype of the pepper plant would be represented as Wt/mut, where 'Wt' represents the wild type allele and 'mut' represents the mutant allele. Since we know it is heterozygous, it possesses both alleles.
2. Production of CaSGR enzyme:
The plant will produce the CaSGR enzyme. The reason for this is that the gene for CaSGR enzyme is present in both alleles (wild type and mutant). However, the promoter sequence is crucial for gene expression, as it is responsible for initiating the transcription process. In this case, the mutant allele lacks a large part of the promoter sequence, which may affect its ability to effectively initiate transcription. Although it may still produce some amount of the enzyme, it is likely to be reduced compared to the wild type allele.
3. Functionality of the CaSGR enzyme:
The functionality of the CaSGR enzyme produced by the plant's mutant allele may be compromised due to the deletion in the promoter sequence. The promoter sequence is responsible for regulating the expression of the gene and ensuring its proper functioning. The absence of a large part of the promoter sequence in the mutant allele can disrupt the regulation of the gene, potentially leading to a non-functional or less functional CaSGR enzyme.
In summary, the heterozygous pepper plant's genotype would be Wt/mut, and it would produce the CaSGR enzyme, although potentially at a reduced level. The functionality of the CaSGR enzyme produced by the mutant allele may be compromised due to the deletion in the promoter sequence.