Question

1) It is almost impossible for a frameshift mutation to be silent. Explain why.

2) A person is exposed to a chemical mutagen that mutates the muscle cells in their arm in such a way that the muscle doesn't work. When that person has a child, do you expect that child to have the same mutation in their DNA? Why or why not?

Answer 1

1) Due to insertion or deletion of a single nucleotide in the coding region of DNA leads to frame shift mutation. In which all the codon of reading frame gets changed. That's why it is almost impossible for a frameshift mutation to be silent. As the whole sequence of protein gets changed in this frameshift mutation. There by whole structure and function of native/excepted protein gets changed. 3-D structure of protein gets distorted due to changes in protein sequence there by the synthesized protein become non-functional.

2) A person is exposed to a chemical mutagen that mutates the muscle cells in their arm in such a way that the muscle doesn't work. When that person has a child, the child will not having the same mutation in DNA.

As the mutation in muscle cell of that person is a phenomenon of somatic cell line mutation. The mutation in somatic cell is not inherited/ transfer to the next generation.

The mutation in germline cell (sperm cell) is inheritable and will transfer from one generation to the next.

So in this case, mutation in muscle cell is a example of somatic cell mutation, so the children will not receive the mutated DNA from their father.

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