Suppose a plant had a nonsense mutation in a gene that encodes for an enzyme required for the synthesis of gibberellic acid. If the plant is homozygous at this locus, what will its phenotype be?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

A nonsense mutation would lead to a premature stop codon in the mRNA, resulting in a truncated non-functional protein. This would likely prevent or greatly reduce the synthesis of gibberellic acid, which is a plant hormone that promotes stem elongation. Therefore, without gibberellic acid, the plant would be short in stature.

Suppose a Plant Had a Nonsense Mutation in a Gene