Which process initiates the passage of half of a parent's DNA to offspring?

A) Meiosis

B) mitosis

C) differentiation

D) fertilization

The process is D) Fertilization.

Explanation:

The process of male and female gamete is called as fertilization. It is the process which initiates that transfer of half of the chromosome from each parent namely father and mother. The chromosome number of body cell is 46, whereas that of germ cell is 23 chromosomes.

This is due to the condition that, the body cell undergoes mitosis whereas the germ cells undergo meiosis giving rise to gametes which have 23 chromosomes. During fertilization each zygote receives 23 chromosomes form sperm and 23 chromosomes from egg.

A

Explanation:

Meiosis halves the chromosomes in a pre-gametic cell and, therefore, the gametes formed are haploid. This halving occurs in Meiosis I (and specifically in Metaphase I). During fertilization, two gametes from different parents meet to form a diploid zygote that develops into an offspring. This zygote, therefore, contains the genetic makeup from each of the parents, on a 50/50 basis. This is one way in which genetic variation in a population is achieved.