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A horticulturalist wants to produce geraniums with specific characteristics. She knows that the trait of red flowers is governed by the allele [tex]R (RR[/tex] and [tex]Rr)[/tex] and the trait of white flowers is governed by the allele [tex]r (rr)[/tex].

The horticulturalist has a red geranium with an uncertain genetic makeup. She crosses it with a white geranium ([tex]rr[/tex]) and gets a generation in which half of the plants have red flowers and half have white flowers. What does this combination of offspring tell her about the genetic makeup of the red geranium parent?

[tex]
\[
\begin{tabular}{|c|c|c|}
\hline
& r & r \\
\hline
? & Rr & Rr \\
\hline
? & rr & rr \\
\hline
\end{tabular}
\]
[/tex]

A. The red geranium is heterozygous for flower color ([tex]Rr[/tex]).

B. The red geranium is homozygous for white flowers ([tex]rr[/tex]).

C. The red geranium is homozygous for red flowers ([tex]RR[/tex]).

D. The trait shows incomplete dominance.

Answer :

To determine the genetic makeup of the red geranium parent, we should look at the patterns of inheritance and the results from the cross with the white geranium.

1. Understanding the Alleles:
- The trait for red flowers is represented by the dominant allele [tex]\( R \)[/tex].
- The trait for white flowers is represented by the recessive allele [tex]\( r \)[/tex].
- A plant with red flowers could have the genotype [tex]\( RR \)[/tex] (homozygous dominant) or [tex]\( Rr \)[/tex] (heterozygous).
- A plant with white flowers must have the genotype [tex]\( rr \)[/tex] (homozygous recessive).

2. The Cross:
- The horticulturalist crosses a red-flowering geranium with a white-flowering geranium.

3. Analyzing the Offspring:
- The offspring consists of half red-flowering plants and half white-flowering plants.

4. Interpreting the Offspring Ratios:
- If the red geranium were homozygous for red flowers ([tex]\( RR \)[/tex]), all offspring would have the genotype [tex]\( Rr \)[/tex] when crossed with the white geranium ([tex]\( rr \)[/tex]). This would result in all plants having red flowers, not just half.
- If the red geranium is heterozygous ([tex]\( Rr \)[/tex]), the possible offspring from crossing with a white geranium ([tex]\( rr \)[/tex]) are:
- [tex]\( Rr \)[/tex] (red flowers)
- [tex]\( rr \)[/tex] (white flowers)
- This combination results in a 1:1 ratio of red to white flowers among the offspring, which matches the observed ratio.

5. Conclusion:
- The result of the cross (half red-flowering and half white-flowering plants) indicates that the red geranium has a genotype of [tex]\( Rr \)[/tex].
- Therefore, the genetic makeup of the red geranium is heterozygous for flower color ([tex]\( Rr \)[/tex]). This explains the observed offspring ratio.

So, the red geranium is heterozygous for flower color ([tex]\( Rr \)[/tex]).

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