In an orbital botanical sanctuary, researchers cultivate the bioluminescent starlight-orchid, a diploid species that reproduces sexually. Crossing two true-breeding strains—one exhibiting azure petals and serrated leaves, and the other displaying amber petals and smooth leaves—produces uniform dihybrid offspring. When these dihybrid plants undergo meiosis to generate gametes, novel combinations of these unlinked traits emerge in subsequent generations. Which meiotic process is directly responsible for generating these recombinant combinations of unlinked genes?

A) The identical replication of sister chromatids during pre-meiotic interphase

B) The irreversible fusion of homologous chromosomes into unified hybrid chromosomes

C) The independent assortment of non-homologous chromosome pairs during metaphase I

D) The targeted induction of nucleotide substitution mutations during prophase II

Inherited traits and variation Original Scenario-Based Practice

Biology · Heredity · Biology · Meiosis & Sexual Reproduction

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Heredity · Biology

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