What is a variant form of a gene called?

What is a variant form of a gene called?

• A. Allele
• B. Gene
• C. Genome
• D. Founder effect

Answer: (A)

Variation in a gene occurs in the form of different versions at the same place on a chromosome. A variant form that can influence traits is called an allele. Each person typically has two alleles for a given gene, one from each parent, and these can be the same (homozygous) or different (heterozygous), which helps explain how genetic diversity arises. The entire set of genetic material is the genome, and a gene is a single unit that can have multiple alleles. The founder effect is a population genetics concept describing how a new population can start with limited genetic variation, not a variant form of a gene.

Variation in a gene occurs in the form of different versions at the same place on a chromosome. A variant form that can influence traits is called an allele. Each person typically has two alleles for a given gene, one from each parent, and these can be the same (homozygous) or different (heterozygous), which helps explain how genetic diversity arises. The entire set of genetic material is the genome, and a gene is a single unit that can have multiple alleles. The founder effect is a population genetics concept describing how a new population can start with limited genetic variation, not a variant form of a gene.