NEETZoologyMolecular Basis of Inheritance
Given below are two statements: one is labelled as Assertion (A) and the other is labelled as Reason (R). Assertion (A): The codon UUU codes for only phenylalanine, illustrating that the genetic code is unambiguous and specific. Reason (R): Some amino acids are coded by more than one codon, which makes the genetic code degenerate. In the light of the above statements, choose the correct answer from the options given
Options
- ABoth Assertion (A) and Reason (R) are true and Reason (R) is the correct explanation of Assertion (A)
- BAssertion (A) is true but Reason (R) is false
- CAssertion (A) is false but Reason (R) is true
- DBoth Assertion (A) and Reason (R) are true but Reason (R) is not the correct explanation of Assertion (A)
Correct answer
D. Both Assertion (A) and Reason (R) are true but Reason (R) is not the correct explanation of Assertion (A)
Step-by-step solution
Assertion (A) is true because a specific codon coding for only a single amino acid is the defining feature of the genetic code being unambiguous and specific. UUU codes exclusively for phenylalanine. Reason (R) is also true because the phenomenon of a single amino acid being coded by multiple codons is known as degeneracy of the genetic code. However, Reason (R) defines degeneracy, which is a completely different property from the unambiguous nature described in Assertion (A). Therefore, Reason (R) does not explain