Standards
Mutation and sexual reproduction lead to genetic variation in a population. As a basis for understanding this concept:
- 2a. Students know meiosis is an early step in sexual reproduction in which the pairs of chromosomes separate and segregate randomly during cell division to produce gametes containing one chromosome of each type.
- 2b. Students know only certain cells in a multicellular organism undergo meiosis.
- 2c. Students know how random chromosome segregation explains the probability that a particular allele will be in a gamete.
- 2d. Students know new combinations of alleles may be generated in a zygote through the fusion of male and female gametes (fertilization).
- 2e. Students know why approximately half of an individual’s DNA sequence comes from each parent.
- 2f. Students know the role of chromosomes in determining an individual’s sex.