Kaplan Nursing Entrance Exam Practice 2026 – Comprehensive Prep

The correct answer is autosomal chromosomes because they are responsible for the majority of an individual's characteristics, including physical traits and body features. Humans have 22 pairs of autosomal chromosomes that carry genes affecting everything from hair color to height and eye color. These chromosomes are inherited from both parents and contribute to the genetic makeup that defines an individual's body characteristics.

In contrast, sex chromosomes, which determine sexual characteristics and reproductive functions, have a more specific role in determining gender and related traits, rather than general body characteristics. Recessive and dominant chromosomes are terms that refer to the expression pattern of genes, rather than types of chromosomes themselves. They describe how certain traits are manifested depending on whether an individual has one or two copies of a gene, but this concept does not pertain directly to the categorization of chromosomes as a whole.