Question

The genotype e+ / e is a ____________ genotype with one wild-type allele and one recessive allele.

1) Homozygous dominant
2) Homozygous recessive
3) Heterozygous
4) Cannot be determined

Answer 1

The genotype e+ / e represents a heterozygous genotype because it consists of one wild-type allele and one recessive allele. The correct answer is option 3) Heterozygous.

Step-by-step explanation:

The genotype e+ / e is an example of a heterozygous genotype, which means it contains one wild-type allele and one recessive allele. This is not a homozygous dominant genotype because it does not have two dominant alleles, nor is it a homozygous recessive genotype because it does not consist of two recessive alleles. Therefore, option 3) Heterozygous is the correct answer. When multiple alleles exist for the same gene, and one is considered the wild type (often abbreviated with a “+”), any alternative version, such as a recessive allele, deviates from this norm. In a heterozygous pair, the dominant trait is always written before the recessive gene (e.g., Aa, not aA), with the wild-type allele typically being dominant over the variant allele.