Suppose that a diploid cell contains 8 chromosomes (2 n = 8). How many different combinations in the gametes are possible?

16

Explanation:

A diploid organism that produces gametes will undergo meiosis to do so. Meiosis reduces the chromosomal number in the gametes by half. Hence, each gamete will have 4 chromosomes (haploid, n). Crossing-over will likely occur during the meiotic process leading to recombination in the arrangement of chromosomes in the gametes.

If this occurs, a mathematical expression of 2^n is used to determine the number of possible combinations, where n is the number of chromosomes in the gamete.

Hence, 2^4 = 16 possible combinations of chromosomes in the gamete.