sat suite question viewer
While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:
- Tibetan mastiffs are large dogs native to the Himalayas.
- A mutation in their EPAS1 gene prevents excess hemoglobin production.
- A mutation in their HBB gene boosts hemoglobin’s oxygen-carrying ability.
- These mutations enable the dogs to withstand hypoxic (low-oxygen) conditions at high altitudes.
- In a 2016 study, Zhen Wang and colleagues noted that Tibetan wolves’ DNA has the same EPAS1 and HBB mutations.
- Wang and colleagues determined that the dogs first acquired these mutations by interbreeding with Tibetan wolves around 24,000 years ago.
The student wants to present the conclusion of Zhen Wang and colleagues’ 2016 study. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?
Explanation
Choice D is the best answer. The sentence presents the conclusion of Zhen Wang and colleagues’ 2016 study: Tibetan mastiffs are able to withstand hypoxic conditions due to their interbreeding with Tibetan wolves 24,000 years ago (which allowed the mastiffs to acquire the necessary genetic mutations).
Choice A is incorrect. The sentence emphasizes a similarity between Tibetan mastiffs and Tibetan wolves; it doesn’t present the conclusions of the 2016 study. Choice B is incorrect. The sentence emphasizes a similarity between the genes of Tibetan mastiffs and Tibetan wolves; it doesn’t present the conclusions of the 2016 study. Choice C is incorrect. The sentence misrepresents information from the notes by indicating that a mutation in mastiffs’ HBB gene prevents excess hemoglobin production; moreover, it doesn’t present the conclusions of the 2016 study.