A triploid organism has how many sets of chromosomes?

A triploid organism is characterized by having three complete sets of chromosomes. In organisms, the term "ploidy" refers to the number of sets of chromosomes present in the nucleus of a cell. A diploid organism, for example, has two sets (one from each parent), while a haploid organism has one set.

In the case of triploidy, which is often observed in certain plants and some animal species, this condition results from the tripling of the diploid number. Therefore, a triploid organism, indicated by the prefix "tri-", possesses three distinct sets of chromosomes, making it distinct from organisms with fewer or more sets. This allows for various biological implications, such as effects on fertility and viability, particularly in hybrid species or in plants where triploid individuals often exhibit certain advantages like increased size or growth rates compared to their diploid counterparts.