B chromosome
Type of chromosome / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dear Wikiwand AI, let's keep it short by simply answering these key questions:
Can you list the top facts and stats about B chromosome?
Summarize this article for a 10 year old
SHOW ALL QUESTIONS
This article is about B-chromosomes. For B-DNA, see B-DNA.
In addition to the normal karyotype, wild populations of many animal, plant, and fungi species contain B chromosomes (also known as supernumerary, accessory, (conditionally-)dispensable, or lineage-specific chromosomes).[1] By definition, these chromosomes are not essential for the life of a species, and are lacking in some (usually most) of the individuals. Thus a population would consist of individuals with 0, 1, 2, 3 (etc.) B chromosomes.[1] B chromosomes are distinct from marker chromosomes or additional copies of normal chromosomes as they occur in trisomies.