Which of the following mutations would be most likely to have a harmful effect on an organism?(1 point)

Question

Responses

a substitution of a thymine for an adenine
a substitution of a thymine for an adenine

a deletion of 3 bases near the center of a gene
a deletion of 3 bases near the center of a gene

there is not enough information to know whether a mutation would be harmful
there is not enough information to know whether a mutation would be harmful

all mutations have a harmful effect on organisms

Answer 1

The mutation that would be most likely to have a harmful effect on an organism is:

a deletion of 3 bases near the center of a gene.

This is because deleting three bases would result in the loss of a single amino acid in the protein product, which could disrupt the protein's function. If the mutation occurred in a critical region of the gene, it could have substantial effects on the protein structure and function, potentially leading to harmful consequences for the organism. In contrast, a substitution of a thymine for an adenine could result in a synonymous mutation (no change in the amino acid) or a conservative substitution (similar amino acid), which might not have any significant impact. Additionally, the idea that "all mutations have a harmful effect on organisms" is not accurate, as many mutations can be neutral or even beneficial.