Question

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

all mutations have a harmful effect on organisms
all mutations have a harmful effect on organisms
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
a deletion of 3 bases near the center of a gene
a deletion of 3 bases near the center of a gene
a substitution of a thymine for an adenine

Answer 1

a deletion of 3 bases near the center of a gene

Reason: a 3‑base deletion removes an amino acid from the protein (and if it’s in the middle of the coding region it’s likely to disrupt structure/function). A single base substitution can be silent or conservative and is less predictably harmful.