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NCERT Class 12 Biology Ch 4 · Full chapter · NEET pattern

Principles of Inheritance and Variation — 50 questions

Built to match the topics, formats and difficulty NEET draws from this chapter, in the proportions it draws them. Includes the assertion-reason, statement-based and match-the-column formats that now appear regularly. Answer key with explanations at the end.

QUESTIONS50 · four options each
MARKING+4 correct, −1 wrong
TIME55 minutes, strict
TOTAL200 marks

Mendel, method and terminology Q1–5

1A true-breeding line is one which:

  1. (a) always produces offspring showing the dominant trait
  2. (b) shows stable trait inheritance and expression for several generations after continuous self-pollination
  3. (c) always yields a 3:1 ratio on selfing
  4. (d) is heterozygous for the character concerned

2Which of the following pairs of contrasting traits was not among the seven studied by Mendel in pea?

  1. (a) Pod shape — inflated / constricted
  2. (b) Flower position — axial / terminal
  3. (c) Seed weight — heavy / light
  4. (d) Pod colour — green / yellow

3In garden pea, the dominant traits for pod colour and seed colour respectively are:

  1. (a) yellow and green
  2. (b) green and yellow
  3. (c) green and green
  4. (d) yellow and yellow

4Mendel's approach was unacceptable to many biologists of his time mainly because he:

  1. (a) worked with a self-pollinating plant
  2. (b) applied statistical analysis and mathematical logic to biological problems
  3. (c) studied seven characters at once
  4. (d) rejected the existence of gametes

5During artificial hybridisation in pea, the removal of anthers from the flower selected as the female parent is termed:

  1. (a) bagging
  2. (b) emasculation
  3. (c) dichogamy
  4. (d) selfing

Monohybrid cross, test cross, probability Q6–11

6In a monohybrid cross between TT and tt, the F2 phenotypic and genotypic ratios respectively are:

  1. (a) 3:1 and 3:1
  2. (b) 3:1 and 1:2:1
  3. (c) 1:2:1 and 3:1
  4. (d) 1:2:1 and 1:2:1

7Among the tall plants of the F2 generation obtained from Tt × Tt, the fraction expected to be homozygous is:

  1. (a) 1/4
  2. (b) 1/3
  3. (c) 1/2
  4. (d) 2/3

8A test cross is performed between:

  1. (a) the F1 and either of its two parents
  2. (b) two F1 individuals
  3. (c) an individual showing the dominant phenotype whose genotype is unknown, and a homozygous recessive individual
  4. (d) two homozygous dominant individuals

9A violet-flowered pea plant, when crossed with a white-flowered plant, produces offspring of which half are violet and half white. The genotype of the violet parent is:

  1. (a) VV
  2. (b) Vv
  3. (c) vv
  4. (d) cannot be determined from the data

10The F2 genotypic ratio of a monohybrid cross can be obtained by expanding:

  1. (a) (½T + ½t)
  2. (b) (½T + ½t)²
  3. (c) (¾T + ¼t)²
  4. (d) (⅓T + ⅔t)²

11Consider the following statements regarding the Law of Segregation:

Which of the statements are correct?

  1. (a) I and II only
  2. (b) I and III only
  3. (c) II and III only
  4. (d) I, II and III

Incomplete dominance, co-dominance, multiple alleles Q12–17

12In Antirrhinum, a cross between true-breeding red and true-breeding white plants gives pink F1. The F2 phenotypic and genotypic ratios respectively are:

  1. (a) 3:1 and 1:2:1
  2. (b) 1:2:1 and 1:2:1
  3. (c) 1:2:1 and 3:1
  4. (d) 9:3:3:1 and 1:2:1

13Co-dominance is best distinguished from incomplete dominance by the fact that in co-dominance:

  1. (a) the F1 is intermediate between the two parents
  2. (b) both alleles express their own products in the F1, which resembles both parents
  3. (c) the genotypic ratio in F2 is altered
  4. (d) more than two alleles must be present in the individual

14The number of genotypes and phenotypes respectively possible in the human ABO blood group system is:

  1. (a) 4 and 6
  2. (b) 6 and 4
  3. (c) 3 and 4
  4. (d) 6 and 6

15The allele i of the ABO system is recessive to both IA and IB because it:

  1. (a) occurs at a low frequency in populations
  2. (b) codes for a structurally different sugar
  3. (c) does not produce any sugar
  4. (d) is carried on the Y chromosome

16A woman of blood group AB marries a man of blood group O. The blood groups possible among their children are:

  1. (a) AB and O only
  2. (b) A and B only
  3. (c) A, B, AB and O
  4. (d) O only

17Assertion (A): Multiple allelism can be demonstrated only through population studies, never within a single individual.
Reason (R): A diploid individual can carry only two alleles of a given gene.

  1. (a) Both A and R are true, and R correctly explains A
  2. (b) Both A and R are true, but R does not explain A
  3. (c) A is true but R is false
  4. (d) A is false but R is true

Dihybrid cross, independent assortment, gametes Q18–23

18A diploid organism heterozygous at four loci can produce how many types of gametes, assuming independent assortment?

  1. (a) 4
  2. (b) 8
  3. (c) 16
  4. (d) 32

19How many types of gametes are produced by an individual of genotype AaBBCcDd?

  1. (a) 2
  2. (b) 4
  3. (c) 8
  4. (d) 16

20In the F2 generation of the cross RrYy × RrYy, the number of genotypes and phenotypes respectively is:

  1. (a) 16 and 4
  2. (b) 9 and 4
  3. (c) 4 and 9
  4. (d) 9 and 9

21In the F2 of a dihybrid cross, the fraction of individuals expected to be homozygous at both loci is:

  1. (a) 1/16
  2. (b) 1/8
  3. (c) 1/4
  4. (d) 9/16

22In the cross TtYy × Ttyy, the proportion of offspring expected to be tall with green seeds is:

  1. (a) 1/8
  2. (b) 3/8
  3. (c) 3/16
  4. (d) 1/4

23Mendel's Law of Independent Assortment was derived from observations on:

  1. (a) a monohybrid cross
  2. (b) a test cross
  3. (c) a dihybrid cross
  4. (d) a back cross

Chromosomal theory, Morgan, linkage and recombination Q24–29

24The chromosomal theory of inheritance was put forward by:

  1. (a) Morgan and Sturtevant
  2. (b) Sutton and Boveri
  3. (c) de Vries and Correns
  4. (d) Punnett and Bateson

25Mendel's results on the inheritance of characters were rediscovered independently in 1900 by:

  1. (a) Sutton, Boveri and Morgan
  2. (b) de Vries, Correns and von Tschermak
  3. (c) Punnett, Bateson and Sturtevant
  4. (d) Henking, Morgan and Boveri

26Morgan's dihybrid crosses in Drosophila gave F2 ratios deviating significantly from 9:3:3:1 because the two genes concerned were:

  1. (a) pleiotropic
  2. (b) situated on different chromosomes
  3. (c) situated on the same chromosome
  4. (d) polygenic in action

27Genes white and yellow showed 1.3 per cent recombination, while white and miniature wing showed 37.2 per cent. It follows that:

  1. (a) white and miniature are more tightly linked
  2. (b) white and yellow are more tightly linked
  3. (c) the three genes lie on three different chromosomes
  4. (d) recombination frequency is unrelated to the distance between genes

28Recombination frequency between gene pairs on the same chromosome was first used as a measure of the distance between genes by:

  1. (a) T. H. Morgan
  2. (b) Alfred Sturtevant
  3. (c) Walter Sutton
  4. (d) R. C. Punnett

29When two genes are closely linked, which of Mendel's laws no longer holds?

  1. (a) Law of dominance
  2. (b) Law of segregation
  3. (c) Law of independent assortment
  4. (d) All three laws

Polygenic inheritance and pleiotropy Q30–32

30Assuming three genes A, B and C control human skin colour additively, which genotype would give a skin colour identical to that of AaBbCc?

  1. (a) AABBCC
  2. (b) aabbcc
  3. (c) AABbcc
  4. (d) AAbbcc

31Phenylketonuria is cited in the NCERT text as the example of:

  1. (a) polygenic inheritance
  2. (b) pleiotropy
  3. (c) co-dominance
  4. (d) multiple allelism

32Assertion (A): Human skin colour occurs as a continuous gradient rather than in a few discrete classes.
Reason (R): Skin colour is governed by three or more genes whose alleles act additively, and it is also influenced by the environment.

  1. (a) Both A and R are true, and R correctly explains A
  2. (b) Both A and R are true, but R does not explain A
  3. (c) A is true but R is false
  4. (d) A is false but R is true

Sex determination Q33–39

33The specific nuclear structure later identified as the X chromosome was traced during spermatogenesis in insects, and named the "X body", by:

  1. (a) Morgan, in 1910
  2. (b) Henking, in 1891
  3. (c) Sutton, in 1902
  4. (d) Boveri, in 1900

34Which statement correctly describes the XO type of sex determination?

  1. (a) Males and females possess equal numbers of chromosomes
  2. (b) The female is the heterogametic sex
  3. (c) The male possesses a single X chromosome with no partner in its place
  4. (d) The male possesses one X and one Y chromosome

35Grasshopper is the classical example of which type of sex determination?

  1. (a) XY type
  2. (b) XO type
  3. (c) ZW type
  4. (d) Haplodiploid

36In many birds, the sex chromosome constitutions of the male and the female respectively are:

  1. (a) ZW and ZZ
  2. (b) ZZ and ZW
  3. (c) XY and XX
  4. (d) XX and XY

37In the honey bee, the drone:

  1. (a) is diploid with 32 chromosomes
  2. (b) produces sperm by meiosis
  3. (c) develops from a fertilised egg
  4. (d) produces sperm by mitosis and has no father

38Which of the following statements about sex determination in the honey bee is incorrect?

  1. (a) Females are diploid, with 32 chromosomes
  2. (b) Males develop from unfertilised eggs by parthenogenesis
  3. (c) A drone can have sons
  4. (d) A drone can have grandsons

39A couple has three daughters. The probability that their fourth child will be a son is:

  1. (a) 1/8
  2. (b) 1/4
  3. (c) 1/2
  4. (d) 3/4

Mutation Q40–42

40Sickle-cell anaemia is the classical example of:

  1. (a) frame-shift mutation
  2. (b) point mutation
  3. (c) trisomy
  4. (d) deletion of a chromosome segment

41Insertion or deletion of base pairs within a gene results in:

  1. (a) point mutation
  2. (b) frame-shift mutation
  3. (c) aneuploidy
  4. (d) polyploidy

42Match the items in the two columns:

(i) Point mutation(A) UV radiation
(ii) Frame-shift mutation(B) Commonly seen in cancer cells
(iii) Mutagen(C) Sickle-cell anaemia
(iv) Chromosomal aberration(D) Insertion of base pairs
  1. (a) i-C, ii-D, iii-A, iv-B
  2. (b) i-D, ii-C, iii-B, iv-A
  3. (c) i-C, ii-A, iii-D, iv-B
  4. (d) i-B, ii-D, iii-A, iv-C

Pedigree analysis Q43–44

43In a human pedigree chart, a double horizontal line joining two individuals denotes:

  1. (a) affected individuals
  2. (b) a consanguineous mating
  3. (c) an individual of unspecified sex
  4. (d) monozygotic twins

44Myotonic dystrophy is used in the NCERT text as the representative example of:

  1. (a) an autosomal recessive trait
  2. (b) an autosomal dominant trait
  3. (c) an X-linked recessive trait
  4. (d) a chromosomal disorder

Mendelian disorders Q45–47

45Red-green colour blindness occurs in approximately:

  1. (a) 8 per cent of males and 0.4 per cent of females
  2. (b) 0.4 per cent of males and 8 per cent of females
  3. (c) 4 per cent of males and 8 per cent of females
  4. (d) 8 per cent of individuals of both sexes

46In sickle-cell anaemia, the amino acid substitution responsible for the defect is:

  1. (a) valine by glutamic acid at position 6 of the β-globin chain
  2. (b) glutamic acid by valine at position 6 of the β-globin chain
  3. (c) glutamic acid by valine at position 6 of the α-globin chain
  4. (d) glutamic acid by valine at position 11 of the β-globin chain

47β-thalassemia is controlled by which gene, on which chromosome?

  1. (a) HBA1, chromosome 16
  2. (b) HBA2, chromosome 11
  3. (c) HBB, chromosome 11
  4. (d) HBB, chromosome 16

Chromosomal disorders Q48–50

48Failure of cytokinesis after the telophase stage of cell division results in:

  1. (a) aneuploidy
  2. (b) polyploidy
  3. (c) monosomy
  4. (d) trisomy

49The karyotype 47, XXY is characteristic of:

  1. (a) Turner's syndrome
  2. (b) Down's syndrome
  3. (c) Klinefelter's syndrome
  4. (d) a normal male

50Turner's syndrome represents:

  1. (a) trisomy of an autosome
  2. (b) monosomy of a sex chromosome
  3. (c) polyploidy
  4. (d) trisomy of a sex chromosome

Answer key Mark honestly, then read every explanation

1 b
2 c
3 b
4 b
5 b
6 b
7 b
8 c
9 b
10 b
11 b
12 b
13 b
14 b
15 c
16 b
17 a
18 c
19 c
20 b
21 c
22 b
23 c
24 b
25 b
26 c
27 b
28 b
29 c
30 c
31 b
32 a
33 b
34 c
35 b
36 b
37 d
38 c
39 c
40 b
41 b
42 a
43 b
44 b
45 a
46 b
47 c
48 b
49 c
50 b

Explanations

1 Three elements define it: continuous self-pollination, stable inheritance, several generations. Effectively homozygous for the character.

2 Seed weight was not among the seven. The seven characters are stem height, flower colour, flower position, pod shape, pod colour, seed shape and seed colour.

3 The inversion that costs the most marks in this chapter: in pods green is dominant over yellow; in seeds yellow is dominant over green.

4 His use of statistics and mathematical logic in biology was entirely new, and is listed in the text as one of the four reasons his work was ignored until 1900.

5 Emasculation. Bagging is the subsequent step of covering the emasculated flower to prevent stray pollen.

6 Phenotypic 3:1, genotypic 1:2:1. Always read the word immediately before "ratio".

7 Of the 16 F2 proportions, tall plants are 1 TT and 2 Tt out of 3 tall. So 1/3 of the tall plants are homozygous — although they are 1/4 of all F2 plants. The question asks among the tall.

8 Option (a) is a back cross, which is the broader category. A test cross is specifically the cross with the homozygous recessive.

9 A 1:1 outcome in a cross with the recessive parent identifies the unknown as heterozygous, Vv.

10 (½T + ½t)² = ¼ TT + ½ Tt + ¼ tt. The unsquared binomial gives only the gamete frequencies.

11 Statement II is false: a homozygous parent produces only one kind of gamete; it is the heterozygote that produces two kinds in equal proportion.

12 Both ratios are 1:2:1. The genotypic ratio is unchanged from an ordinary monohybrid cross; only the phenotypic ratio changes from 3:1, because the heterozygote now has its own appearance.

13 Incomplete dominance gives an intermediate the parents did not have; co-dominance gives both parental products together, as with A and B sugars in group AB.

14 Six genotypes, four phenotypes. Two genotypes each for groups A and B, one each for AB and O. The reversed order is the standard distractor.

15 It produces no sugar at all, so it has nothing to express when paired with either functional allele. This ties directly to the enzyme explanation of dominance.

16 IAIB × ii gives only IAi (A) and IBi (B). Neither AB nor O is possible — a classic blood-group elimination question.

17 Both true and the reason is the explanation. A gene may have many alleles in a population, but any diploid individual samples only two of them.

18 2n where n is the number of heterozygous loci: 24 = 16.

19 Count only heterozygous loci — Aa, Cc and Dd, so n = 3 and 23 = 8. The BB locus contributes nothing. Answering 16 means counting all four loci.

20 9 genotypes and 4 phenotypes. In general, 3n genotypes and 2n phenotypes. 16 is the number of squares, not of genotypes.

21 The four homozygous genotypes RRYY, RRyy, rrYY and rryy occupy one square each, so 4/16 = 1/4.

22 Solve each gene separately and multiply. Tall = 3/4; green (yy from Yy × yy) = 1/2. So 3/4 × 1/2 = 3/8. This is NCERT exercise 7.

23 The third law came from the dihybrid cross. Dominance and segregation came from the monohybrid cross.

24 Sutton and Boveri noted the parallel; Sutton united it with Mendelian principles and named the theory. Morgan supplied the experimental verification, which is a different contribution.

25 de Vries, Correns and von Tschermak, in 1900, independently.

26 Both genes were on the X chromosome, so they were linked and did not assort independently.

27 Lower recombination means tighter linkage. 1.3 per cent for white and yellow indicates far tighter linkage than 37.2 per cent for white and miniature.

28 Sturtevant, Morgan's student, converted recombination frequency into map distance.

29 Only independent assortment fails. Segregation has no exceptions, which is why it is the answer to "which law is universally applicable".

30 Only the number of dominant alleles matters, not which genes they belong to. AaBbCc has three; AABbcc also has three (A, A, B). AAbbcc has only two.

31 Pleiotropy — one gene, in this case coding for phenyl alanine hydroxylase, producing several phenotypic effects.

32 Both true, and the reason explains the assertion. Additive allele effects plus environmental influence produce a continuous gradient instead of discrete classes.

33 Henking, 1891, in insects, during spermatogenesis. He named it but could not explain its significance.

34 In XO type there is no Y at all, and the male therefore has one chromosome fewer than the female. The "O" denotes absence.

35 Grasshopper — the only example named in the text for XO type.

36 Male ZZ, female ZW. Reversing this is the most common error in the section. Note it is the opposite arrangement to humans, where the female carries the identical pair.

37 The drone is haploid with 16 chromosomes, arises from an unfertilised egg, and produces sperm by mitosis because meiosis cannot halve an already haploid set.

38 A drone cannot have sons: his sperm can only produce fertilised eggs, and every fertilised egg develops into a female. He can, however, have grandsons through his daughters.

39 Each pregnancy is independent, with a 50 per cent probability of either sex. Previous children do not alter it.

40 A single base pair substitution, hence a point mutation. Frame-shift arises from insertions and deletions instead.

41 Frame-shift — the reading frame downstream of the site is thrown out of register.

42 Point mutation is exemplified by sickle-cell anaemia; frame-shift by insertion of base pairs; UV radiation is the mutagen named in the text; chromosomal aberrations are commonly seen in cancer cells.

43 The double line marks a consanguineous mating, which is the pedigree clue pointing towards a recessive disorder.

44 Autosomal dominant. It appears only in the caption of Figure 4.14, which is exactly why it is asked.

45 8 per cent of males against 0.4 per cent of females, because the genes lie on the X chromosome and males have only one X.

46 Glutamic acid is replaced by valine at position 6 of the β-globin chain. The reversed direction and the α-chain are the two standard traps.

47 HBB on chromosome 11. α-thalassemia involves HBA1 and HBA2 on chromosome 16, with four genes in total across both parents.

48 Polyploidy — a whole extra set. Aneuploidy comes from failure of chromatid segregation and involves a single chromosome.

49 Klinefelter's syndrome. Turner's is 45, X0; Down's is 47 with trisomy of chromosome 21.

50 Monosomy of a sex chromosome — one X is absent. Down's syndrome is the trisomy of an autosome.

Scoring guide for a chapter test at this level: above 180 means the chapter is secure. 140–180 means the concepts are in place but recall is still soft — work the fact vault. Below 140 means going back to the specific day's line-by-line document rather than re-reading everything.