Why do sex-linked traits follow different patterns of inheritance than other traits?
A. Females can have a recessive trait with only one recessive allele.
B. Males and females have different sex chromosomes.
C. Males have two X chromosomes, and females only have one.
D. Females do not carry alleles for sex-linked traits.

Question

Why do sex-linked traits follow different patterns of inheritance than other traits?
 		A.	Females can have a recessive trait with only one recessive allele.
 		B.	Males and females have different sex chromosomes.
 		C.	Males have two X chromosomes, and females only have one.
 		D.	Females do not carry alleles for sex-linked traits.

blues · Answer

Again, process of elimination works well with these. Do any of the options strike you as being likely, or unlikely?

anonymous · Answer

C and D strike me firstly.

blues · Answer

C is false - it is females with two X chromosomes, and males who are XY.

And D is also false - females definitely carry alleles for X linked traits. If the allele on one X is recessive and the allele on the other X is dominant, they will express the trait for which they have the dominant allele. So they won't always express a recessive phenotype.

blues · Answer

And I just sort of explained why A is false, leaving B as the only possible correct answer.

anonymous · Answer

Ohhhh, I get it now. Thanks!