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nmdcat.online July 14, 2026

A blacksmith develops highly muscular arms due to constant hammering. Under Lamarckian inheritance, his children are born with muscular arms. What is the fundamental flaw in this scenario according to modern genetics?

A. Hammering only affects the bone structure, not the muscles.
B. Somatic mutations in muscle cells are not transmitted through germ line cells (sperm/egg).
✓
C. Muscular hypertrophy is entirely controlled by maternal mitochondrial DNA.
D. The blacksmith's wife would counteract the genetic inheritance of muscle mass.

📝 Explanation

Modern genetics shows that phenotype changes in somatic tissues (like muscle hypertrophy from working out) do not alter the DNA sequences of germ cells, making inheritance impossible.

📖 Additional Information

  • Hammering only affects the bone structure, not the muscles.
  • Somatic mutations in muscle cells are not transmitted through germ line cells (sperm/egg).
  • Muscular hypertrophy is entirely controlled by maternal mitochondrial DNA.
  • The blacksmith's wife would counteract the genetic inheritance of muscle mass.

Modern genetics shows that phenotype changes in somatic tissues (like muscle hypertrophy from working out) do not alter the DNA sequences of germ cells, making inheritance impossible.

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