What would occur if the repressor of an inducible operon were mutated so it could not bind the operator?
a. irreversible binding of the repressor to the promoter
b. reduced transcription of the operon’s genes
c. buildup of a substrate for the pathway controlled by the operon
d. continuous transcription of the operon’s genes

d. continuous transcription of the operon’s genes

Explanation:

An operon is a group of genes that function together to form a polycistronic mRNA. It has a structural gene, a promoter region, an operator region and a regulatory gene. Structural gene codes for the product. RNA Polymerase binds to promoter region to begin transcription. Regulatory gene codes for the repressor protein and repressor protein binds to the operator region.

If the repressor is mutated, it wont be able to bind to the operator region so the operon will go into continuous induced state. Operon genes will be transcribed continuously since there is no repressor molecule to halt the process.