Answer 3

Dr. Foster: ‘Your idea about how a dominant allele can determine the trait and how a recessive allele only shows up when it’s with another recessive allele is on the right track. However, this statement still doesn’t quite capture everything we need about dominant and recessive behavior. Think carefully about how these alleles interact in different pairings, and then decide which answer gives the most complete explanation.’

Alice: ‘I see. So although the reasoning about recessive alleles having no effect when paired with a dominant one is valid, maybe there’s something else missing in how the answer is phrased. I’ll read over the other answers and see which one more accurately matches our lectures and data.’

Try again! Which answer is completely correct?

Answer 1: ‘Dominant is the allele that determines the phenotype of a characteristic even when paired with the same or different allele in the individual. Recessive has no effect on the phenotype when paired with a dominant allele because it remains hidden in that scenario.’

Answer 2: ‘Recessive is the allele that determines the phenotype of a characteristic even when paired with the same or different allele in the individual. Dominant has no effect on the phenotype when paired with a dominant allele because it remains hidden.’