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A biologist was working with a cell culture - VCE - SSCE Biology - Question 19 - 2016 - Paper 1
Question 19
A biologist was working with a cell culture. He viewed a cell just before it entered mitosis and he counted 18 chromosomes. Later, the nucleus of one of the daughter... show full transcript
Worked Solution & Example Answer:A biologist was working with a cell culture - VCE - SSCE Biology - Question 19 - 2016 - Paper 1
Step 1
the most likely explanation for this observation is
Answer
The observation of unequal DNA content in the daughter cells indicates an error in chromosome segregation. During mitosis, specifically in anaphase, the sister chromatids are supposed to separate to ensure each daughter cell receives an equal amount of genetic material. The fact that one daughter cell has 19 molecules of DNA (an increase) and the other has 17 molecules of DNA (a decrease) suggests that during anaphase, the sister chromatids of the chromosome that should have been evenly divided likely failed to separate. Therefore, the correct explanation is:
B. during anaphase, sister chromatids of one chromosome failed to separate.