Question

Given below are two statements :
Statement (I) : Gregor Johann Mendel worked on Pisum sativum and established the laws of inheritance of traits.
Statement (II) : Gregor Johann Mendel also worked on mice, however, he had to abandon them due to pressure from the religious authority.

• A. Both Statement (I) and Statement (II) are correct.
• B. Both Statement (I) and Statement (II) are incorrect.
• C. Statement (I) is correct but Statement (II) is incorrect.
• D. Statement (I) is incorrect but Statement (II) is correct.

Hint:

Mendel originally bred mice to study how traits are inherited, but religious objections to studying animal mating led him to choose the garden pea (*Pisum sativum*) as a non-controversial alternative model organism.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is A

Step 1: Understanding the Concept:
Gregor Johann Mendel is recognized as the "Father of Genetics" for his pioneer research on the inheritance of traits.
While his experiments on garden peas (*Pisum sativum*) are widely famous, his initial work included animal systems as well.

Step 2: Detailed Explanation:
Let us analyze the historical facts presented in both statements:
- Statement (I) is correct: Mendel conducted detailed, quantitative hybridization experiments on the garden pea (*Pisum sativum*) in the St. Thomas' Abbey gardens in Brno between 1856 and 1863.
His statistical analysis of these crosses led to the formulation of the fundamental laws of inheritance: the Law of Segregation and the Law of Independent Assortment.
- Statement (II) is correct: Before starting his work on peas, Mendel investigated the inheritance of coat color and patterns using mice in his monastery room.
However, the local Bishop (Anton Ernst Schaffgotsch) objected to a monk keeping and breeding animals to study sexual reproduction within the monastery.
Due to this pressure from religious authority, Mendel had to abandon his experiments on mice and transition to using plant models (*Pisum sativum*) to study inheritance.
Therefore, both Statement (I) and Statement (II) are correct, making Option (A) the correct choice.

Step 3: Final Answer:
Both Statement (I) and Statement (II) are correct.