AP BIOLOGY

Detailed explanation-1: -So the correct option is ‘mutation’.

Detailed explanation-2: -Mitosis builds a person with an identical set of chromosomes in every cell. And meiosis generates reproductive cells with new combinations of gene variations. Chromosomes are sometimes gained, lost, or rearranged during meiosis and fertilization, causing people to have genetic disorders.

Detailed explanation-3: -Genetic variation can be caused by mutation (which can create entirely new alleles in a population), random mating, random fertilization, and recombination between homologous chromosomes during meiosis (which reshuffles alleles within an organism’s offspring).

Detailed explanation-4: -Genetic variation is increased by meiosis Because of recombination and independent assortment in meiosis, each gamete contains a different set of DNA. This produces a unique combination of genes in the resulting zygote. Recombination or crossing over occurs during prophase I.