Ruth is heterozygous for the BRCA1 mutation. One of her parents contributed a normal allele to her whereas the other parent contributed a mutant allele to her. From this information, which parent must have contributed the mutant version of this gene to Ruth?

Question

Biology

Puck

4 December, 13:30

Ruth is heterozygous for the BRCA1 mutation. One of her parents contributed a normal allele to her whereas the other parent contributed a mutant allele to her. From this information, which parent must have contributed the mutant version of this gene to Ruth?

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Answers (1)

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London Moses · Answer 1

It could be either the mother or father.

Explanation:

The BRCA1 is a gene involved in tumor suppression, this means that having one of the mutations can lead to a higher risk of having cancer during a lifetime. Scientist have found more than 600 hundred variations in this gene. This gene has been linked to breast cancer. It is a misconception that breast cancer can only be inherited from the mother's family. Half of all inherited breast cancer cases are inherited from the father's side of the family.

With all these facts being said there is not enough information to determine if the gene was inherit by the father or mother. It could from either one of them.