Correct choice is (a) Gene
For explanation: The factors hypothesized by Mendel encode for traits that are expressed. These are now called genes. Genes are fragments of DNA that code for a functional protein. In eukaryotes, genes are composed of two elements namely, exons and introns. Exons code for an mRNA transcript, while the introns are non-coding elements and are removed out by a spliceosomal complex.