Question

An explorer stumbled upon a remote valley and found plants that produced a colorful, sweet fruit. Many of these plants were autopolyploid and came in varieties that differed by their ploidy and the size of fruit that was produced. Which of the following plant genomes would MOST likely produce the largest fruit?

A. Autotetraploid
B. Autotriploid
C. Autodiploid
D. Autopentaploid

Answer 1

The autotetraploid plant (4n) is most likely to produce the largest fruit among the given options because it has multiple chromosome sets, allowing for greater genetic material and consequently larger plant characteristics, while avoiding the issues associated with higher-order ploidy levels like pentaploids.

Step-by-step explanation:

In plant biology, autopolyploid plants are those that have more than two sets of chromosomes. Generally, the higher the ploidy level, the more genetic material is present, which can result in larger and more robust plant characteristics. Among the options provided, an autotetraploid (4n) is likely to produce larger fruits than an autotriploid (3n), autodiploid (2n), or autopentaploid (5n). Autopentaploids, despite having more sets of chromosomes than autotetraploids, sometimes face issues with uneven chromosome segregation during cell division, which can affect the plant's development and fruit size.

Considering this, and examples from nature such as the octoploid strawberry and the hexaploid kiwi, higher levels of polyploidy often correlate with an increase in cell size and robustness. In this question's context, the autotetraploid plant genome would most likely produce the largest fruit because it has a higher level of ploidy than the diploid version but may avoid some of the irregularities that can occur in higher-order polyploids like pentaploid plants.