Final answer:
A female with an x-linked recessive mutation would pass on the trait to her offspring, potentially resulting in sons who are affected and daughters who may be carriers. This pattern occurs because males have one X chromosome and one Y, while females have two X chromosomes.
Step-by-step explanation:
An x-linked recessive mutation in a female germline would be expected to result in a phenotype in her offspring under certain conditions. If the female is heterozygous for the trait (a carrier), she may not exhibit any phenotypic effects of the disease herself. For her sons to be affected by an X-linked recessive disease, such as color blindness, hemophilia, or muscular dystrophy, they only need to inherit the one recessive gene from their mother, because they will inherit their father's Y chromosome, which does not carry the disease allele.
If the daughter inherits the X-linked recessive gene from her mother, she would not be affected unless she also inherits a second X-linked recessive gene from her father. However, daughters have a 50 percent chance of being carriers if their mother is a carrier. This explains why X-linked traits are more common in males than females; males have only one X chromosome, so a single recessive disease allele on it will result in the disease, while females have two X chromosomes and must inherit two copies of the disease allele—one from each parent—to express the phenotype.