alleryStart learning →How many genes contribute to eye colour in humans, at minimum?
AAt least two
BAt least four
CAt least six
DAt least eight
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: D. At least eight
1. Mendel's work implied that each characteristic was controlled completely by a single gene.
2. In fact single observable characteristics are almost always influenced by several genes acting together.
3. Eye colour in humans involves at least eight genes.
4. That is why eye colour cannot be predicted from one simple Punnett square.
_Source: OpenStax Biology (1st ed., CC BY 4.0), Ch 12 "Mendel's Experiments and Heredity", section 12.3 Laws of Inheritance_
Keep practising Mendel's Experiments and Heredity
Browse all Mendel's Experiments and Heredity questions for NCEA Level 2, or explore more Biology topics.
Related questions
Sort each clue by its dominance patternOrder the steps of crossing overKnock out the false allele claimsA single characteristic gives a phenotypic ratio whose parts total 16. What does that usuaIn shepherd's purse, seeds are ovoid only when both genes are homozygous recessive. What rTwo mice heterozygous at both the A and C genes are crossed. What phenotypic ratio of agouAgouti coat colour needs a dominant A allele, but pigment of any kind needs a dominant C aIn an epistatic pair of genes, what are the alleles being masked called?