Heredity

Previous Years' CBSE Board Questions

1. Consider the following statements: (2024)
(i) The sex of a child is determined by what it inherits from the mother.
(ii) The sex of a child is determined by what it inherits from the father.
(iii) The probability of having a male child is more than that of a female child.
(iv) The sex of a child is determined at the time of fertilisation when male and
female gametes fuse to form a zygote.
The correct statements are:
(a) (i) and (iii)
(b) (ii) and (iv)
(c) (iii) and (iv)
(d) (i), (iii) and (iv)
Answer. (b) / (ii) and (iv)
2. Chromosomes: (2024)
(i) carry hereditary information from parents to the next generation.
(ii) are thread like structures located inside the nucleus of an animal cell.
(iii) always exist in pairs in human reproductive cells.
(iv) are involved in the process of cell division.
The correct statements are :
(a) (i) and (ii)
(b) (iii) and (iv)
(c) (i), (ii) and (iv)
(d) (i) and (iv)
3. Mendel worked out the rules of heredity by working on garden pea using a
number of visible contrasting characters. He conducted several experiments
by making a cross with one or two pairs of contrasting characters of pea plant.
On the basis of his observations he gave some interpretations which helped to
study the mechanism of inheritance. (2024)
(i) When Mendel crossed pea plants with pure tall and pure short
characteristics to produce F₁ progeny, which two observations were made by
him in F₁ plants?
(ii) Write one difference between dominant and recessive trait.
(iii) (A) In a cross with two pairs of contrasting characters
RRYY X rryy
(Round Yellow) (Wrinkled Green)
Mendel observed 4 types of combinations in F₂ generation. By which method
did he obtain F₂ generation? Write the ratio of the parental combinations
obtained and what conclusions were drawn from this experiment.
OR
(iii) (B) Justify the statement:
"It is possible that a trait is inherited but may not be expressed."
Answer. (i) • In F1 generation, all plants were tall / No short plants were
observed
• No medium height plants / No halfway characteristics were observed / Only
dominant parental traits were seen and not the mixture of the two.
(ii)

(iii) (A) • Self-pollination / Self-fertilisation / Selfing of F1 plants

• Ratio – Round Yellow : Wrinkled Green
9:1
• Traits are inherited independently
OR
(iii) (B) If pea plants with yellow seeds are crossed with plants of green seeds,
it is found that in F1 generation all the plants have yellow seeds. When F1
plants are self-pollinated, it is found that in F2 generation, plants with yellow
seeds and plants with green seeds are obtained. This shows that both the
traits are inherited but only one trait is visible in F1 progeny while the other
remains unexpressed.
8.1 Accumulation of Variation During Reproduction
VSA (1 mark)
1. How many pairs of chromosomes are present in human beings? (2020 C)
2. All the variations in a species do not have equal chances of survival. Why?
(NCERT, Foreign 2014) |
SAI (2 marks)
3. Justify the statement "Sex of the children will be determined by what they
inherit from their father". (Term II, 2021-22)
4. "Sex chromosomes in human males and females are XY and XX respectively.
Statistical probability of getting either a male or a female child is 50%. Justify
this statement giving reason. (Term II, 2021-22 C)
5. What is variation? List two main reasons that may lead to variation in a
population. (Term II, 2021-22)
(a) Label (1) and (2) in the given diagram showing sex determination in
human beings.
(b) If child inherits X-chromosome from the father what will be his/her
gender?

SA II (3 marks)
7. (a) Name the two types of gametes produced by men.
(b) Does a male child inherit X chromosome from his father? Justify.
(c) How many types of gametes are produced by a human female? (Term II,
2021-22)
LA (4/5 marks)
8. Sex of an individual is determined by different factors in various species.
Some animals rely entirely on the environmental cues, while in some other
animals the individuals scan change their sex during their life time indicating
that sex of some species is not genetically determined. However, in human
beings, the sex of an individual is largely determined genetically.
(a) In what way are the sex chromosomes 'X' and 'Y' different in size? Name
the mismatched pair of sex chromosome in humans.
(b) Write the number of pair/pairs of sex chromosomes present in human
beings. In which one of the parent (male/female) perfect pair/pairs of sex
chromosomes are present?
(c) Citing two examples, justify the statement "Sex of an individual is not
always determined genetically".
OR
9. (c) Draw a flow chart to show that sex is determined genetically in human
beings. (Term II, 2021-22)
(a) "Sexual reproduction gives rise to more viable variations than asexual
reproduction." Justify this statement and explain how the viable variations
affect the evolution of those organisms that reproduce sexually.
(b) Does genetic combination of mothers play a significant role in determining
the sex of a newborn? Give reason to justify your answer. (2019 C)
8.2 Heredity
MCQ
10. A cross between pea plant with white flowers (vv) and pea plant with
violet flowers (VV) resulted in F2 progeny in which ratio of violet (VV) and
white (vv) flowers will be (a) 1:1 (b) 2:1 (c) 3:1 (d) 1:3. (2023)
11. Assertion (A): In humans, if gene (B) is responsible for black eyes and
gene (b) responsible for brown eyes, then the colour of eyes of the progeny
having gene combination Bb, bb or BB will be black only. Reason (R): The
black colour of the eyes is a dominant trait.
(a) Both (A) and (R) are true and (R) is the correct explanation of (A).
(b) Both (A) and (R) are true and (R) is not the correct explanation of (A).
(c) (A) is true but (R) is false.
(d) (A) is false but (R) is true. (2023)
12. Which one of the given statements is incorrect?
(a) DNA has the complete information for a particular characteristic.
(b) DNA is the molecule responsible for the inheritance of characters from
parents to offsprings.
(c) Change in information will produce a different protein.
(d) Characteristics will remain the same even if protein changes. (2023)
13. Consider the following two statements:
(i) The trait that expresses itself in F₁ generation.
(ii) The trait that keeps on passing from one generation to another. The
appropriate terms for the statements (i) and (ii) respectively are
(a) Recessive trait ; Dominant trait
(b) Dominant trait; Recessive trait
(c) Dominant trait; Inherited trait
(d) Recessive trait ; Inherited trait (2023)
13. Consider the following two statements:
(i) The trait that expresses itself in F1 generation.
(ii) The trait that keeps on passing from one generation to another.
The appropriate terms for the statements (i) and (ii) respectively are
(a) Recessive trait; Dominant trait
(b) Dominant trait; Recessive trait
(c) Dominant trait ; Inherited trait
(d) Recessive trait; Inherited trait (2023)
14. Assertion (A): Human population show a great deal of variations in traits.
Reason (R): All variations in a species have equal chances of surviving in the
environment in which they live.
(a) Both Assertion (A) and Reason (R) are true and Reason (R) is the correct
explanation of the Assertion (A)
(b) Both Assertion (A) and Reason (R) are true, but Reason (R) is not the
correct explanation of the Assertion (A)
(c) Assertion (A) is true, but Reason (R) is False.
(d) Assertion (A) is false, but Reason (R) is true. (2023)
15. Assertion (A): The sex of a child in human beings will be determined by
the type of chromosome he/she inherits from the father.
Reason (R): A child who inherits 'X' chromosome from his father would be a
girl (XX), while a child who inherits a 'Y' chromosome from the father would
be a boy (XY).
(a) Both (A) and (R) are true and reason (R) is the correct explanation of the
assertion (A).
(b) Both (A) and (R) are true, but reason (R) is not the correct explanation of
the assertion (A).
(c) (A) is true, but (R) is false.
(d) (A) is false, but (R) is true. (2020)
VSA (1 mark)
16. What is heredity? (2021 C, AI 2014)
17. A Mendelian experiment consisted of breeding pea plants bearing violet
flowers with pea plants bearing white flowers. What will be the result in F₁
progeny? (2018)
18. Name the information source for making proteins in the cells. (Delhi 2014)
19. What is a gene? (AI 2014)
20. Why is the progeny always tall when a tall pea plant is crossed with a short
pea plant? (Foreign 2014)
SAI (2 marks)
21. (i) In a cross between violet flowered plants and white flowered plants,
state the characteristics of the plants obtained in the F₁ progeny.
(ii) If the plants of F₁ progeny are self-pollinated, then what would be
observed in the plants of F2 progeny?
(iii) If 100 plants are produced in F2 progeny, then how many plants will show
the recessive trait? (Term II, 2021-22)
SA II (3 marks)
22. How do Mendel's experiments show that the traits are inherited
independently? Explain. (NCERT Intext, Term II 2021-22, Delhi 2017, Al 2016)
23. A cross was made between green-stemmed tomato plants denoted by (GG)
and purple-stemmed tomato plants denoted as (gg) to obtain F1 progeny.
(a) What colour of the stem would you expect in their F₁ progeny and why?
(b) Give the percentage of purple-stemmed plants if F₁ plants are allowed to
self-pollinate to produce F2 progeny.
(c) Write the ratio between GG and gg plants in the F2 progeny. (Term II, 2021-
22)
24. (a) Why did Mendel carry out an experiment to study inheritance of two
traits in garden pea?
(b) What were his findings with respect to inheritance of traits in F1 and F2
generation?
(c) State the ratio obtained in the F2 generation in the above mentioned
experiment. (2020) Ap
25. A green stemmed rose plant denoted by GG and a brown stemmed rose
plant denoted by gg are allowed to undergo a cross with each other.
(a) List your observations regarding:
(i) Colour of stem in their F₁ progeny
(ii) Percentage of brown stemmed plants in F2 progeny if plants are self
pollinated.
(iii) Ratio of GG and Gg in the F2 progeny.
(b) Based on the findings of this cross, what conclusion can be drawn? (2020)
26. (a) Why is the F₁ progeny always of tall plants when a tall plant is crossed
with a short pea plant?
(b) How is F2 progeny obtained by self-pollination of F1 progeny different from
F1 progeny? Give reason for this observation.
(c) State a conclusion that can be drawn on the basis of this observation.
(2020)
27. Name the plant Mendel used for his experiment. What type of progeny was
obtained by Mendel in F₁ and F2 generations when he crossed the tall and
short plants? Write the ratio he obtained in F2 generation plants. (Delhi 2019)
28. "It is a matter of chance whether a couple will have a male or a female
child." Justify this statement by drawing a flow chart. (2019, Foreign 2015)
29. How did Mendel explain that it is possible that a trait is inherited but not
expressed in an organism? (AI 2017)
OR
With the help of an example justify the following statement: "A trait may be
inherited, but may not be expressed." (AI 2016)
 OR
"It is possible that a trait is inherited but may not be expressed." Give a
suitable example to justify this statement. (Foreign 2015, AI 2014)
30. In one of his experiments with pea plants Mendel observed that when a
pure tall pea plant is crossed with a pure dwarf pea plant, in the first
generation, F₁ only tall plants appear.
(a) What happens to the traits of the dwarf plants in this case?
(b) When the F1 generation plants were self- fertilised, he observed that in the
plants of second generation F2, both tall plants and dwarf plants were present.
Why it happened? Explain briefly. (Delhi 2016)
31. How did Mendel interpret his result to show that traits may be dominant
or recessive? Describe briefly. (NCERT Intext, Delhi 2016)
32. In a monohybrid cross between tall pea plants (TT) and short pea plants
(tt), a scientist obtained only tall pea plants (Tt) in the F1 generation.
However, on selfing the F1 generation pea plants, he obtained both tall and
short plants in F2 generation. On the basis of above observations with other
angiosperms also, can the scientist arrive at a law? If yes, explain the law. If
not, give justification for your answer. (Delhi 2016)
33. List two differences in tabular form between dominant trait and recessive
traits. What percentage/ proportion of the plants in the F2
generation/progeny were round, in Mendel's cross between round and
wrinkled pea plants? (Foreign 2016)
34. Explain Mendel's experiment with peas on inheritance of characters
considering only one visible contrasting character. (Foreign 2016, 2014)
35. A cross was made between pure breeding pea plants, one with round and
green seeds and the other with wrinkled and yellow seeds.
(a) Write the phenotype of F₁ progeny. Give reason for your answer.
(b) Write the different types of F2 progeny obtained along with their ratio
when F1 progeny was selfed. (Delhi 2014)
36. (a) Mendel crossed tall pea plants with dwarf pea plants in his experiment.
Write his observations giving reasons on the F1 and F2 generations.
(b) List any two contrasting characters other than height that Mendel used in
his experiments in pea plants.
(Delhi 2014)
LA (4/5 marks)
37. The most obvious outcome of the reproductive process is the generation of
individuals of similar design, but in sexual reproduction they may not be
exactly alike. The resemblances as well as differences are marked. The rules of
heredity determine the process by which traits and characteristics are reliably
inherited. Many experiments have been done to study the rules of inheritance.
(i) Why an offspring of human being is not a true copy of his parents in sexual
reproduction?
(ii) While performing experiments on inheritance in plants, what is the
difference between F₁ and F₂ generation?
(iii) Why do we say that variations are useful for the survival of a species over
time?
OR
(iii) Study Mendel's cross between two plants with a pair of contrasting
characters.
RRYY x rryy
Round Yellow Wrinkled Green
He observed 4 types of combinations in F₂ generation. Which of these were
new combinations? Why do new features which are not present in the parents,
appear in F2 generation? (2023)
38. In some families, either rural or urban, females are tortured for giving
birth to a female child. They do not seem to understand the scientific reason
behind the birth of a boy or a girl. Infact the mother is not responsible for the
sex of the child and it has been genetically proved that the sex of a newborn is
determined by what the child inherits from the father.
(a) State the basis on which the sex of a newborn baby is determined in
humans.
(b) Why is the pair of sex chromosomes called a mismatched pair in males?
(c) How is the original number of chromosomes present in the parents
restored in the progeny?
OR
(c) Explain by giving two examples of the organisms in which the sex is not
genetically determined. (2023)
39. A student crossed pea plants having round and yellow seeds with pea
plants having wrinkled and green seeds. He found that only one type of seeds
were produced in the F₁ generation. When these F1 generation pea plants
were self-pollinated with each other, then in addition to the seed type of F₁
generation, some new types of seed combinations were also obtained in the F2
generation.
(a) Mention the dominant traits observed in F1 generation.
(b) What are the new possible combinations of seeds likely to be observed in
F₂ generation?
(c) Give reason why the traits which were not visible in the seeds of F1
generation reappeared in the seeds of F2 generation. Write the ratio of
different types of seeds obtained in F2 generation in this case.
OR
(c) What is meant by the terms (1) dominant, and (II) recessive traits?
Explain. (Term II, 2021-22 C)
40. The mechanism by which the sex of an individual is determined is called
sex-determination. In human beings, sex of a newborn is genetically
determined, whereas in some others it is not. There are 46 (23 pairs)
chromosomes in human beings. Out of these, 44 (22 pairs) control the body
characters and 2 (one pair) are known as sex chromosomes. The sex
chromosomes are of two types - X chromosome and Y chromosome. At the
time of fertilisation, depending
upon which type of male gamete fuses with the female gamete, the sex of the
newborn child is decided.
(a) Why is a pair of sex chromosomes in human beings called a mismatched
pair in terms of type and size?
(b) If the gametes always have half the number of chromosomes, then how is
the original number of chromosomes restored in the organism?
(c) Name two animals whose sex is not genetically determined. Explain the
process of their sex determination.
OR
(c) With the help of a flowchart only, show how sex is genetically determined
in human beings. (Term II, 2021-22)
41. Mendel blended his knowledge of Science and Mathematics to keep the
count of the individual exhibiting a particular trait in each generation. He
observed a number of contrasting visible characters controlled in pea plants in
a field. He conducted many experiments to arrive at the laws of inheritance.
(a) What do the F₁ progeny of tall plants with round seeds and short plants
with wrinkled seeds look like?
(b) Name the recessive traits in above case.
(c) Mention the type of the new combinations of plants obtained in F2 progeny
along with their ratio, if F₁ progeny was allowed to self pollinate.
OR
(c) If 1600 plants were obtained in F2 progeny, write the number of plants
having traits:
(i) Tall with round seeds
(ii) Short with wrinkled seeds Write the conclusion of the above experiment.
(Term II, 2021-22)
42. How do Mendel's experiments show that
(a) traits may be dominant or recessive?
(b) inheritance of two traits is independent of each other? (NCERT Intext,
2019, Delhi 2017)
43. (a) Why did Mendel choose garden pea for his experiments? Write two
reasons.
(b) List two contrasting visible characters of garden pea Mendel used for his
experiment.
(c) Explain in brief how Mendel interpreted his results to show that the traits
may be dominant or recessive. (Foreign 2016)

CBSE Sample Questions

8.1 Accumulation of Variation During Reproduction
SAI (2 marks)
In an asexually reproducing species, if a trait X exists in 5% of a population
and trait Y exists in 70% of the same population, which of the two traits is
likely to have arisen earlier? Give reason. (Term II, 2021-22)
8.2 Heredity
MCQ
2. If a pure tall pea plant is crossed with a pure dwarf pea plant then, what
percentage of F₁ and F2 generation respectively will be tall?
(a) 25%, 25%
(c) 75%,100%
(b) 50%, 50%
(d) 100%, 75% (2022-23)
3. Assertion (A): Height in pea plants is controlled by efficiency of enzymes
and is thus genetically controlled.
Reason (R): Cellular DNA is the information source for making proteins in the
cell.
(a) Both (A) and (R) are true and (R) is the correct explanation of (A).
(b) Both (A) and (R) are true and (R) is not the correct explanation of (A).
(c) (A) is true, but (R) is false.
(d) (A) is false but (R) is true. (2022-23)
4. Assertion (A): A geneticist crossed a pea plant having violet flowers with a
pea plant with white flowers, he got all violet flowers in first generation.
Reason (R): White colour gene is not passed on to next generation.
(a) Both (A) and (R) are true and (R) is the correct explanation of (A).
(b) Both (A) and (R) are true but (R) is not the correct explanation of (A).
(c) (A) is true, but (R) is false.
(d) (A) is false, but (R) is true. (2020-21)
SA II (3 marks)
5. Two pea plants - one with round yellow seeds (RRYY) and another with
wrinkled green (rryy) seeds produce F₁ progeny that have round, yellow
(RrYy) seeds. When F₁ plants are self-pollinated, which new combination of
characters is expected in F2 progeny?
How many seeds with these new combinations of characters will be produced
when a total 160 seeds are produced in F2 generation? Explain with reason.
(Term II, 2021-22)
6. After self-pollination in pea plants with round yellow seeds, following types
of seeds were obtained by Mendel:

Analyse the result and describe the mechanism of inheritance which explains
these results. (2020-21)
7. In humans, there is a 50% probability of the birth of a boy and 50%
probability that a girl will be born. Justify the statement on the basis of the
mechanism of sex-determination in human beings. (2020-21)
LA (4 marks)
8. Pooja has green eyes while her parents and brother have black eyes. Pooja's
husband Ravi has black eyes while his mother has green eyes and father has
black eyes.
(a) On the basis of the above given information, is the green eye colour a
dominant or recessive trait? Justify your answer.
(b) What is the possible genetic makeup of Pooja's brother's eye colour?
(c) What is the probability that the offspring of Pooja and Ravi will have green
eyes? Also, show the inheritance of eye colour in the offspring with the help of
a suitable cross.
OR
(c) 50% of the offspring of Pooja's brother are green eyed. With help of cross
show how this is possible. (2022-23)
9. Sahil performed an experiment to study the inheritance pattern of genes. He
crossed tall pea plants (TT) with short pea plants (tt) and obtained all tall
plants in F1 generation.
(a) What will be set of genes present in the F1 generation?
(b) Give reason why only tall plants are observed in F1 progeny.
(c) When F₁ plants were self-pollinated, a total of 800 plants were produced.
How many of these would be tall, medium height or short plants? Give the
genotype of F2 generation.
OR
(c) When F₁ plants were cross-pollinated with plants having tt genes, a total of
800 plants were produced. How many of these would be tall, medium height
or short plants? Give the genotype of F2 generation. (Term II, 2021-22)

SOLUTIONS
Previous Years' CBSE Board Questions
1. In human beings, 23 pairs of chromosomes are present in each cell. Out of
23 pairs, 22 pairs of chromosomes carry genes which control somatic traits,
these chromosomes are called autosomes. The 23rd is called sex
chromosomes. pair
2. All the variations do not have equal chances of survival in the environment
in which they live. Depending on the nature of variations, different individuals
would have different kinds of advantages. The organisms which are most
adapted to the environment will survive.
3.

Human female (XX) produces all gametes (ova) with X-chromosomes, while
human male (XY) produces 50% gametes (sperms) with X-chromosome while
50% gametes with Y-chromosome. If sperm having X chromosome fertilises
the ovum with X chromosome then a female child will be produced, otherwise
a male child will be produced.

Sex of the child (offspring) is determined by the type of sperm that fuses with
ovum at the time of fertilisation. Therefore, there is 50% chance of a male
child being born and a 50% chance of a female child being born.
5. Variation is the degree of differences in the progeny (offsprings) and
between the progeny and parents. Two main reasons of variations are
mutations and genetic recombination during sexual reproduction.
6. (a) Label (1) - Gametes; Label (2) - Zygote
(b) If a child inherits X-Chromosome from the father then the sex of the child
will be female.
7. (a) The gametes produced by human males are of two types, (22 + X) and
(22 + Y).
(b) No, a male child does not inherit X chromosome from his father. A male
child can inherit 'X' chromosome from his mother only. Mother has XX
chromosome whereas, father has XY. The X chromosome of male child can be
inherited from mother only and the Y-chromosome can be inherited only from
father.

(c) A human female produces only one type of gamete (22 + X).
8. (a) X chromosome is morphologically distinct from Y chromosome. Y
chromosome is smaller than X chromosome. Hence, they are dissimilar or
heteromorphic. Men have mismatched pair of sex chromosome in humans in
which one is normal size X while other is a short one called Y.
(b) Human beings have 22 pair of autosomal chromosomes and one pair of sex
chromosome. Women have a perfect pair of sex chromosomes both called X.
(c) (i) Sex of the individual is not always determined genetically. In some
organisms, gender may be determined by environmental factors. For example
snails, turtles and lizards sex is determined by the temperature at which
fertilised egg are kept.
OR
(ii) Refer to Answer 4.
9. (a) During sexual reproduction, at the time of gamete formation, meiotic cell
division takes place. During meiosis, crossing over between fragments of
homologous chromosomes which brings about new gene combinations to be
transferred to new generation. Crossing over is the fundamental cause of
origin of variations in sexually reproducing organisms. Asexual reproduction
does not involve meiosis and crossing over because of one parent lineage.
Hence, only minute variations may occur in them due to mutation. The
variations caused by crossing over in sexually reproducing organisms are
subjected to the selection process. Natural selection selects those variations
which have more adaptive value and guide them towards evolution of new
species. In this way, sexual reproduction gives rise to more viable variations
for evolution.
(b) Mothers have the combination of XX chromosomes. Thus, mother is
homogametic and produces only one type of gametes, having X chromosomes.
Boy or girl, thus, inherit X chromosome from mother. Therefore, mother does
not play any important role in determination of sex of the new born.
10. (a): Parents:
11. (d)
12. (d)
13. (c)
14. (c): Variations get accumulated or discarded as combined effect of
environmental factors and reproduction process.
15. (a)
16. The inheritance of characters (or traits) from the parents to their
offsprings is called heredity.
17. According to the Mendelian experiment, violet colour (VV) is a dominant
trait while white colour (vv) is a recessive trait. Hence, the colour of the flower
in F1 progeny will be violet (Vv). Concept Applied (G Law of dominance
18. Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) present in the chromosomes of cell nucleus
is the information source for making proteins.
19. A gene is a unit of DNA on a chromosome which governs the synthesis of
particular protein that controls specific characteristics (or traits) of an
organism.
20. When a tall pea plant is crossed with a short pea plant, the resultant
progeny is always tall because tall is dominant trait and short is recessive trait.
Therefore, dominant trait expresses itself in the progeny.
21. (i) The plants obtained in F₁ progeny will be violet since violet is a
dominant trait.
(ii) If the plants of F₁ progeny are self pollinated then the F2 generation will
have violet and white flowers in the ratio of 3: 1. Self pollination of F₁
generation is shown as follows:
Phenotypic: 3 : 1
ratio Violet : White
(iii) The ratio of progeny produced in F2 generation is 3: 1. i.e., 3 violet flowers
and 1 white flower. Hence, the

number of white flowers will be Hence, 25 plants will show the

recessive trait.
22.

23. (a) F1 progeny will have green stemmed tomato plants as green is
dominant over purple stemmed tomato plants.
(b) If F₁ plants are self pollinated, then the percentage of purple stemmed
plant in F2 progeny will be 25%.
24. (a) Mendel carried out crosses with two traits to see the interaction and
basis of inheritance between them. In a dihybrid cross given by Mendel, it was
observed that when two pairs of characters were considered each trait
expressed independent of the other.
(b) To study inheritance of traits in F₁ and F₂ generation, a cross was made
between round yellow and wrinkled green parents.
(c) In F₁ generation, all plants are with round yellow seeds. But in F2
generation, we find all types of plants : Round yellow, Round green, Wrinkled
yellow, Wrinkled green. F2 generation ratio: Round-yellow = 9; Round-green =
3; Wrinkled-yellow = 3; Wrinkled-green =1
25.
The colour in the F₁ progeny is green stemmed as green stem colour is
dominant.
(ii) F1 progeny on self pollination:

F2 generation : Green stemmed : Brown stemmed

3:1
(iii) Ratio of GG and Gg in F2 progeny :
Genotype of F2 progeny - GG: Gg
1: 2
(b) This is a monohybrid cross. This shows that out of two contrasting traits
only one dominant trait appears in F₁ generation and the trait which does not
express is recessive. On selfing the F₁ plants, both the traits appear in next
generation but in a definite proportion.
26. (a) When a tall plant (TT) is crossed with a short pea plant (tt), only tall
plants are obtained in F₁ progeny. It is because out of two contrasting traits
only one appears in the progeny of first generation. This means that the trait
which appears in F1 generation is dominant and the trait which does not
express is recessive. The character TT for tall plant is dominant, so all the
plants are tall.
In F₂ generation both tall and dwarf plants are obtained. Appearance of
suppressed recessive trait in individuals of F2 generation in Mendelian cross
indicates that characters of recessive traits are not lost. When the F1
generation plants were allowed to self-fertilise both the parental trait were
expressed in definite proportion in F2 generation.
(c) Above observation shows that only one dominant allele is expressed. This
is called law of dominance. In a heterozygous individual, two dissimilar alleles
remain together and do not get mixed up. At the time of gamete formation,
they separate so that each gamete receives only one allele and is always pure.
This is called "law of purity of gametes".
27. Mendel selected garden pea (Pisum sativum) for his series of hybridisation
experiments. He first selected two pureline plants (tall plant having gene TT
and short plant having gene tt) and then crossed such plants having
contrasting characters. In the F1 generation, he observed that only one of the
two contrasting character appeared, he called this character as dominant and
the one which does not get expressed in F₁ was called as recessive. He later
selfed the F1 plants and observed that both the traits appear in next
generation but in a definite proportion. This can be explained by the following
cross:
So, the plants of F₁ generation will be all tall plants and after selfing, both tall
and dwarf plants are obtained in F2 generation. The ratio of tall and dwarf
plants that Mendel obtained in F2 generation is 3: 1.
28. Sex is determined at the time of fertilisation when male and female
gametes fuse. Male produces two types of gametes, i.e., having X or Y
chromosome and female produces same type of gametes containing X
chromosomes. The sex of the child is determined at the time of fertilisation
when male and female gametes fuse to form zygote. If a sperm (male gamete)
carrying X chromosome fertilises an egg or ovum (female gamete) carrying X
chromosome, then the offspring will be a girl (female). This is because the
offspring will have XX combination of sex chromosomes. If a sperm (male
gamete) carrying Y chromosome fertilises an egg or ovum (female gamete)
which has X chromosome, then the offspring will be a boy (male). This is
because the offspring will have XY combination of sex chromosomes.
Therefore, there are 50% chance of a male child and 50% chance of a female
child.
29. Mendel first selected two pure line plants. He then crossed such plants
having contrasting characters. In the F₁ generation, he observed that only one
of the two contrasting character appeared, he called it dominant and the one
which does not get expressed in F₁ was recessive. He later selfed the F₁ plants
and observed that both the traits appear but in a definite proportion. It can be
explained by the following cross:

This is how Mendel explained that a trait may be inherited but not expressed
in the organism.
30. (a) Mendel's monohybrid cross indicated that out of two contrasting traits
only one appears in the progeny of first generation. This implies that the trait
which appears in F1 generation is dominant and the trait which does not
express is recessive. We can also say that gene controlling the dominant trait is
dominant gene or allele and gene controlling the recessive trait is recessive
gene or allele. In F₁ progeny although the dominant trait is expressed but
genes for both dominant and recessive traits are present in a heterozygous
condition. The recessive trait has a chance to express in next generation only if
recessive genes come in homozygous condition. So the trait for dwarf plant is
not expressed in F₁ generation. This can be illustrated by the given cross:

32. In the situation discussed in the question the scientist can arrive at two
different laws, i.e., law of dominance and law of segregation (or law of purity
of gametes). This can be explained with the help of following crosses :
In F₁ hybrid, two dissimilar alleles are present for one character, i.e., height T
is for tallness and t is for dwarfness, out of which only one allele called
dominant allele expresses itself and the one which remains unexpressed is
called recessive allele. This is called "law of dominance". Also the two
dissimilar alleles that remain together in a heterozygous individual do not get
mixed up and keep their distinct identity. Hence, at the time of gamete
formation they separate so that each gamete receives only one allele and is
always pure which enables reappearance of recessive trait in F2 progenies
when the two recessive alleles come together. This is called "law of purity of
gametes."
33. Differences between dominant traits and recessive trait are as follows:

When Mendel crossed round and wrinkled seeds, F1 plants produced were tall.
On selfing, heterozygous tall plants, offsprings produced in a ratio of 3(Tall): 1
(dwarf). So, the percentage of plants with round seeds will be 75%. This can
be illustrated as follows:

34. Mendel crossed a pure tall pea plant with pure dwarf pea plant. All the
plants obtained in F₁ generation were tall. When Mendel selfed plants from F1
generation then he obtained both tall and dwarf plants in F2 generation in
the ratio of 3:1.
This can be illustrated as follows:
This explains that for each pair of contrasting characters there are two alleles.
The trait which is expressed in F₁ is dominant trait and is controlled by
dominant allele and
the trait which remains unexpressed in F₁ is the recessive trait and is
controlled by recessive gene. When both the contrasting alleles are present
together in F₁ individuals, no mixing of alleles occurs and they again segregate
at the time of gamete formation. Therefore, when the recessive alleles come
together they result in reappearance of recessive trait in F2 generation.
35. (a) The given cross was made between pure breeding pea plants, one with
round and green seeds and the other with wrinkled and yellow seeds. Yellow
seed colour and round seed shape is dominant over green seed colour and
wrinkled seed shape. In F₁ generation, dominant traits express itself, whereas
recessive traits get suppressed.

Therefore, the phenotype of F1 progeny is round and yellow.

(b) The different types of F₂ progeny obtained along with their ratio when F₁
progeny was selfed could be illustrated by the given cross:
Round yellow seeds - 9; Round green seeds - 3; Wrinkled yellow seeds - 3;
Wrinkled green seeds – 1 Round green and wrinkled yellow seeds were new
combinations produced in F2 generation.
36. (a) The possible cross of Mendel's experiment is :
Hence, tall (T) is dominant whereas dwarf (t) is recessive. In F1 generation,
only dominant trait expresses itself, whereas recessive trait gets suppressed.
In F2 generation, both traits, i.e., dominant and recessive express themselves.
In this way, Mendel's experiment showed that the traits (tall and dwarf) are
inherited independently.
(b) The two contrasting characters other than height that Mendel used in his
experiment in pea plants are round/wrinkled seeds and violet/white flowers.
37. (i) In sexual reproduction offspring of human being is not a true copy of
his parents because it inherits half of its genetic material from each parent.
During the formation of gametes (sperm and egg cells), the genetic material
undergoes recombination that leads to shuffling or mixing of genetic material
from both parents, resulting in offspring with unique combination of genes.
(ii) F₁ generation is the first filial generation of the offspring from the parents
whereas F₂ generation is the second filial generation of the offspring,
generated through inbreeding of F1 generation. F₁ generation can be distinctly
different from the parental type whereas F₂ generation always exhibit some
parental genotypes.
(iii) Variations allow genetic diversity that is important for the development of
new traits and increasing adaptability towards changes in the environment. It
makes the organisms better adapted for survival under changing conditions.
OR
(iii) The given dihybrid cross between round yellow (RRYY) and wrinkled
green (rryy) seeds Explains that the inheritance of two traits is independent
of each other.
F2 generation: Round-yellow = 9, Round-green = 3,
Wrinkled-yellow = 3, Wrinkled-green = 1
Round green and wrinkled yellow seeds were new combinations that
appeared in F₂ generation. New combinations that appeared can be explained
by law of independent assortment. According to Mendel's law of independent
assortment more than one pair of traits are considered in a cross
simultaneously, the factors responsible for each pair of trait are distributed
independently to the gametes.
38. (a) Sex of child is determined by what it inherits from the father. A child
who inherits X chromosome from her father will be a girl and one who inherits
a Y chromosome from father will be a boy.
(b) Human beings have 22 pairs of autosomes and one pair of sex
chromosomes. The females possess two homomorphic sex chromosomes,
named XX while males contain two heteromorphic sex chromosomes, i.e., XY.
The Y chromosome is shorter than X chromosome. Therefore a pair of sex
chromosomes in human beings is called mismatched pair in terms of type and
size.
(c) Gametes contain half the number of chromosomes of parent. But, when the
two gametes (male and female) fuse to form the zygote, the normal diploid
condition is restored. Hence, the formation of gametes by meiosis and fusion
of male and female gamete help to maintain the number of chromosomes in
organism.
OR
(c) Two animals in which sex is not determined genetically are turtle and
crocodile. The type of sex in them is determined by environmental factors. In
turtles, the temperature of egg incubation has a significant effect on the sex of
developing embryos. Males are predominant below 28°C, females above 33°C
and equal number of the two sexes between 28-33°C. In crocodiles, high
temperature induces maleness and low temperature femaleness.
39. (a) Refer to answer 35 (a)
(b) Refer to answer 35 (b)
(c) In a dihybrid cross given by Mendel, it was observed that when two pairs
of traits or characters were considered, each trait expressed independent of
the other. Thus, Mendel was able to propose the Law of Independent
Assortment which says about independent inheritance of traits. This could be
explained clearly from the given cross:
In F2 generation, different types of seed obtained are
in the ration of 9 Round-yellow 3 Round-green :
3 Wrinkled-yellow: 1 Wrinkled-green
OR
(c) (i) Dominant trait: It is the trait controlled by dominant allele. It is the trait
which is expressed in F1 generation.
(ii) Recessive trait : It is the trait controlled by recessive allele. It is the trait
which remains suppressed in F1 generation and appears in F₂ generation.
40. (a) Human beings have 22 pairs of autosomes and one pair of sex
chromosomes. The females possess two homomorphic sex chromosomes,
called XX while males have a mismatched pair in which one is a normal sized X
while the other is a short-one called Y.
(b) Gametes contain half the number of chromosomes. But, when the gametes
fuse to form the zygote, the normal diploid condition is restored. Hence, the
formation of gametes by meiosis helps to maintain the number of
chromosomes in organism.
(c) Two animals in which sex is not determined genetically are turtle and
crocodile. The type of sex in them is determined by environmental factors. In
turtles, the temperature of egg incubation has a significant effect on the sex of
developing embryos. Males are predominant below 28°C, females above 33°C
and equal number of the two sexes between 28-33°C. In crocodiles, high
temperature induces maleness and low temperature induces femaleness.
OR
(c) Flow chart of sex determination in human beings is as follows:
41. (a) The F₁ progeny will be tall plant with round seeds.
(b) Recessive traits are short plant and wrinkled seed.
(c) The new combinations will be tall plant with wrinkled seeds and short
plant with round seeds. The ratio will be 9:3:3:1:: Tall plant with round seed :
Tall plant with wrinkled seeds: Short plant with round seed: Short plant with
wrinkled seed.
OR
(c) (i) The F₂ ratio will be 9:3:3:1:: Tall plant with round seed Tall plant with
wrinkled seeds: Short plant with round seed: Short plant with wrinkled seed.

Tall plant with round seeds

(ii) Short plant with wrinkled seed

42. (a) Mendel first crossed pure-bred tall pea plants with pure-bred dwarf
pea plants and found that only tall pea plants were produced in the first
generation (F₁). He then self crossed the tall pea plants of the F₁ generation
and found that tall plants and dwarf plants were obtained in the second
generation or (F2) in the ratio of 3:1. Mendel said that the trait of dwarfness of
one of the parent pea plant had not been lost, it was suppressed in the first
generation to re-emerge in the second generation. He called the suppressed
trait of 'dwarfness' as 'recessive trait' and the expressed trait of 'tallness' as
the 'dominant trait'. In this way, Mendel's experiments with tall and dwarf pea
plants showed that the traits may be dominant or recessive. Hence, this could
be explained by the given cross:
(b) Mendel observed that he had started with two combinations of
characteristics in seeds, round-yellow and wrinkled-green, and two new
combinations of characteristics had appeared in the F₂ generation, round-
green and wrinkled-yellow. According Mendel's second law of inheritance
more than one pair of traits are considered in a cross simultaneously, the
factors responsible for each pair of trait are distributed independently to the
gametes. The cross given below showing dihybrid cross explains that the
inheritance of two traits is independent of each other.
F2 generation: Round-yellow = 9, Round-green = 3, Wrinkled-yellow = 3,
Wrinkled-green =1
43. (a) Mendel choose garden pea for his experiments because:
(i) Pea plants were easy to grow and it shows some clear contrasting traits like
some pea plants are tall whereas others are dwarf.
(ii) Pea plants are self pollinating and many generation of pea plants can be
produced in comparatively less time.
(b) The contrasting characters of garden pea plant studied by Mendel are:
 CBSE Sample Questions
If trait X exists in 5% (smaller fraction) and trait Y exists in 70% (larger
fraction) of the population then the larger fraction i.e., trait Y must have arisen
earlier because in asexual reproduction variation do not occur, as the cell
produces identical copies of DNA. (1/2)
New trait come in the population only due to sudden mutation and further
inherited. 70% of the population with trait Y is likely to have been replicating
that trait for longer period than 5% of population with trait X. (1/2)
2. (d) (1)
3. (a): Cellular DNA is the information source for making proteins in the cell. A
section of DNA that gives information for one protein is called the gene for that
protein. Height in pea plant is regulated by hormones. Hormone production in
turn is controlled by genes which control activity of enzyme. (1)
4. (a) (1)
5.

Out of 160 seeds, 30 round green and 30 wrinkled yellow seeds are new
combination of characters in F2 progenies. The new combination of the
characteristics are produced because of the independent assortment of seed
shape and seed colour trait. (3)
6. On analysing the result, the ratio obtained is 9:3:3:1 in which parental as
well as new combinations are observed. This indicates that progeny plants
have not inherited a single whole gene set from each parent. Every germ cell
takes one chromosome from the pair of maternal and paternal chromosomes.
When two germ cells combine, segregation of one pair of characters is
independent of other pair of characters. (3)
7. In human beings, the genes inherited from the parents decide whether the
child will be boy or girl. Women have a same pair of sex chromosomes (XX).
But, men have a mismatched pair (XY). All children will inherit an X
chromosome from their mother regardless of whether they are boys or girls.
Thus, the sex of the children will be determined by what they inherit from
their father. A child who inherits an X chromosome from father will be a girl
and one who inherits a Y chromosome from father will be a boy. (3)
8. (a) Green eye colour is recessive as it will express only in homozygous
condition. (1)
(b) Pooja's brother have black eyes, hence he can have either genotype, BB
(homozygous alleles) or Bb (heterozygous alleles). (1)
(c) 50% of the offsprings will have green eye colour. Pooja has bb genotype
while Ravi has Bb. Offsprings will have either black or green eye colour. This
can be illustrated by following cross:

OR
(c) Brother is heterozygous(Bb) and wife is green(bb)

Therefore, 50% of the offsprings can have green eye colour as per the given
cross. (2)
(b) Tall (T) is a dominant trait whereas short (t) is a recessive trait and the
gene corresponding to the recessive trait fails to express itself in presence of
the gene representing dominant trait (TT or Tt). Therefore, all the plants
appear tall in the F1 generation. (1)
(c) When F₁ plants are self pollinated, cross is illustrated as following
Out of 800 plants, 200 tall plants, 400 medium height plants and 200 short
plants are produced. (2)
 OR
(c) In a cross between Tt x tt, 400 tall (TT) and 400 short (tt) plants will be
produced.

Out of 800 plants, 400 tall and 400 short plants are produced. No tall plants
are produced in F1 generation. (2)