Mutations in Which a Single Mutant Allele is Dominant in Its

Question

Mutations in which a single mutant allele is dominant in its ability to induce cancer are known as
A) recessive activators.
B) dominant activators.
C) heterozygous activators.
D) homozygous activators.
E) penetrant activators.

Accepted Answer

Mutations that have a dominant effect in inducing cancer are known as dominant activators. These mutations only need to be present in one allele to induce cancer, while recessive mutations require both alleles to be mutated. Heterozygous and homozygous refer to the number of copies of the allele present, but do not specify whether the mutation is dominant or recessive. Penetrance refers to the proportion of individuals with a genotype who express the associated phenotype, and is not related specifically to cancer mutations.