Practice question The labels for two new orchids were lost. One orchid formed after pollen and egg cells from the two parent orchids fused. The other grew from a stem cutting of one parent. A genetic test detected two marker variants in each plant.
Genetic marker records for the orchid collection | Plant sample | Marker variants detected |
|---|
| Parent orchid M | K and L |
|---|
| Parent orchid N | R and S |
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| New plant P | K and S |
|---|
| New plant Q | K and L |
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Explain which new plant was produced sexually and which was produced asexually. Link the marker evidence to gamete fusion, genetic mixing and the likely genetic outcome of each method.