Question

Jane has red hair, which comes from a recessive gene. This must mean that Jane received the gene from _______.

a) Her father
b) Her mother
c) Both parents
d) Neither parent

Answer 1

Jane received the recessive gene for red hair from both of her parents, as both contributed one recessive allele for Jane to express this trait.

Step-by-step explanation:

Jane has red hair, which is a trait that comes from a recessive gene. For a recessive trait to be expressed, a person must inherit two copies of the gene, one from each parent. Therefore, the correct answer to the question, 'Jane has red hair, which comes from a recessive gene. This must mean that Jane received the gene from _______,' is c) Both parents. Since red hair is a recessive trait, Jane must have gotten one recessive allele from her mother and another from her father, making her genotype for that trait homozygous recessive.