State that a heterozygous individual will not be pure-breeding

Heterozygous Individuals and Pure-Breeding

A heterozygous individual, which possesses two different alleles for a specific gene (e.g., Aa), will not be pure-breeding. This distinction is important in genetics and breeding practices.

Explanation

• Heterozygous Condition: In a heterozygous individual, the presence of two different alleles means that the organism can produce gametes with different alleles (A or a). As a result, when this individual breeds, the offspring can inherit either allele, leading to variation in the traits expressed.
• Pure-Breeding Definition: Pure-breeding refers to organisms that are homozygous for a particular trait (e.g., AA or aa). These individuals consistently produce offspring with the same phenotype because they pass on identical alleles.