Why do organelles like mitochondria and chloroplasts have their own DNA?(1 point)

Question

Responses

DNA is used to code for proteins, which these organelles synthesize.
DNA is used to code for proteins, which these organelles synthesize.

They used to be free-living prokaryotes that functioned as unicellular organisms.
They used to be free-living prokaryotes that functioned as unicellular organisms.

All organelles have their own DNA, and these two demonstrate that property.
All organelles have their own DNA, and these two demonstrate that property.

They are responsible for their own replication and division inside the cell.

Answer 1

The correct response is:

They used to be free-living prokaryotes that functioned as unicellular organisms.

Mitochondria and chloroplasts are believed to have originated from free-living prokaryotic organisms that were engulfed by ancestral eukaryotic cells in a symbiotic relationship. This endosymbiotic theory explains why these organelles have their own DNA, which is similar to bacterial DNA and essential for their functions within the cell.