Final answer:
A mutation from AGT to AGA in the DNA sequence would result in the amino acid change from serine (Ser) to arginine (Arg), which is known as a missense mutation. These types of mutations can have significant effects on protein function depending on the properties of the amino acids involved. Therefore , the correct answer options is b)
Step-by-step explanation:
If a mutation occurs which changes the sequence of the coding strand of DNA from AGT to AGA, the amino acid coded for by that sequence will change. The original DNA codon AGT codes for the amino acid serine (Ser), and the mutated codon AGA codes for the amino acid arginine (Arg). Therefore, the correct answer is that it will code Arg instead of Ser, as a result of this point mutation.
There are different types of mutations such as missense, nonsense, and frameshift mutations. A missense mutation like the one described change one amino acid to another, which can potentially have significant effects on the protein structure and function, depending on the properties of the amino acids involved.
The substitution of AGT (Ser) to AGA (Arg) is an example of a missense mutation. In contrast, a nonsense mutation changes a codon encoding an amino acid to a stop codon, which leads to premature termination of protein synthesis.
Moreover, a frameshift mutation, which is caused by insertions or deletions of nucleotides, can alter the reading frame of the protein-coding sequence, potentially leading to more drastic changes in the protein product than a single amino acid substitution. However, the mutation described in the question is not a frameshift mutation as there is no insertion or deletion; it's an example of a point mutation.