Question

An elephant has 56 chromosomes. Which statement about a zygote of an elephant is true?

Answer 1

You divide the number of chromosomes in half, just like humans. So the female zygote has 28 chromosomes and the male sperm have 28 chromosomes. This way each set of chromosomes contributes the same amount to each sex cell. 

Answer 2

The right answer is The zygote has 56 chromosomes, 28 inherited from the mother and 28 from the father.

In diploid organisms such as mammals, each individual has two copies of each gene, one from the mother and the other from the father (exception: sex chromosome genes). If these two versions are identical, the individual is said to be homozygous for the gene considered. In the opposite case, it has two different versions (two different alleles), and it is heterozygous for this gene.