What is the term for a mutation involving a piece of a chromosome that breaks off and reattaches in reverse orientation?

The correct term for a mutation involving a piece of a chromosome that breaks off and reattaches in reverse orientation is inversion mutation. Inversions occur when a segment of a chromosome is cut out, flipped around, and then reinserted into the chromosome, changing the orientation of the genetic material in that segment. This can impact gene expression and protein function because the sequence of genes may be altered in a way that affects how they are read or processed during cellular activities.

In contrast, other types of mutations include insertion mutations, where additional base pairs are added into the DNA sequence, and deletion mutations, where base pairs are removed, potentially leading to frameshifts in gene coding. Point mutations involve a change at a single nucleotide position, which may lead to a different amino acid being incorporated into a protein or a premature stop signal. The defining characteristic of inversion mutations is the rearrangement of the chromosome segment in the opposite orientation, which fundamentally distinguishes them from these other mutation types.