Free Plant Breeding and Genetics MCQs with Answers

• A. Frankel (1977)
• B. East and Mangelsdref (1925)
• C. Hughes and Babceek
• D. Bresbaker (1958)

Explanation: East and Mangelsdorf reported gametophytic self-incompatibility in 1925.

• A. Oat
• B. Sorghum
• C. Rice
• D. Wheat

Explanation: Donald coined the term ideotype in relation to wheat breeding, describing a model plant with traits expected to give high yield in a…

• A. All of the above
• B. Small waxy and thick leaves
• C. Sunken, small and less stomata
• D. Deep root system

Explanation: Deep roots improve access to stored soil water, while small, thick, waxy leaves and reduced or sunken stomata limit water loss.

• A. Biochemical factors
• B. all the above
• C. Morphological factors
• D. Physiological factors

Explanation: Drought resistance is a complex trait involving morphological features such as roots and leaves, physiological responses such as stomatal…

• A. Plasma genes
• B. Polygenes
• C. All the above
• D. Oligogenes

Explanation: Resistance may be controlled by major genes, several genes acting together, or cytoplasmic factors, depending on the host and pest or…

• A. Rice
• B. Wheat
• C. Barley
• D. Maize

Explanation: Rice has produced the largest number of officially recognized mutant varieties through mutation breeding.

• A. Mutator gene
• B. Mutable gene
• C. Antimutalor gene
• D. Hot spot

Explanation: A mutable gene is one that itself changes at an unusually high frequency.

• A. Brassica
• B. Rye
• C. Datura
• D. Oat

Explanation: Blakeslee reported the first monoploid, or haploid, plant in Datura. This discovery helped establish the importance of chromosome-number…

• A. Nullisomic
• B. Tetrasomic
• C. Trisomic
• D. Monosomic

Explanation: A monosomic individual has one chromosome fewer than the normal diploid complement, written as 2n−1.

• A. Tyagi and Prasad (1965)
• B. Greshof and Doy (1972)
• C. Mehta and Upadhya (1960)
• D. Singh (1960)

Explanation: Gresshoff and Doy reported haploid tomato plants through anther culture in 1972.

• A. Standard parent
• B. Mid parent
• C. Better parent
• D. Popular variety

Explanation: Heterobeltiosis is the superiority of a hybrid over its better parent, so it is estimated by comparing the hybrid with the…

• A. Hybrid
• B. Top cross
• C. Poly cross
• D. Inbred

Explanation: Repeated inbreeding of an allogamous, or cross-pollinated, species produces a highly homozygous true-breeding line called an inbred.

• A. Hull (1945)
• B. Bruce (1910)
• C. East (1908)
• D. Shull (1914)

Explanation: George H. Shull coined the term heterosis in 1914 while describing the increased vigor commonly seen in hybrids.

• A. Shull (1914)
• B. Davenport (1908)
• C. Bruce (1910)
• D. Davis (1927)

Explanation: Davenport first proposed the dominance hypothesis in 1908, explaining heterosis as the masking of deleterious recessive alleles by…

• A. Typsin inhibitor
• B. Goiterogens
• C. Both A & B
• D. Neither

Explanation: Soybean contains trypsin inhibitors, which reduce protein digestion, and goitrogenic factors that can interfere with thyroid function.

• A. Trytophan
• B. Arginine
• C. Lysine
• D. Methionine

Explanation: Methionine is commonly the limiting amino acid in green leafy vegetables, although their overall protein content is usually modest.

• A. All the above
• B. Protein
• C. Vitamin
• D. Oil

Explanation: Nutritional-quality breeding improves the composition or concentration of several food constituents, including oil quality, protein…

• A. Pearl millet
• B. Berseem
• C. Sorghum
• D. Lucem

Explanation: Sorghum can contain dhurrin, a cyanogenic glucoside that releases hydrogen cyanide and is toxic when present at high levels.

• A. Safflower
• B. Til
• C. Soybean
• D. Mustard

Explanation: Erucic acid is a long-chain fatty acid historically associated with mustard and rapeseed oils.

• A. Maize
• B. Barley
• C. Oenothera
• D. Sorghum

Explanation: Barbara McClintock discovered transposable elements, popularly called jumping genes, while studying maize kernels.