4.6.3.3 The Understanding of Genetics Flashcards
1
Q
Who was Gregor Mendel?
A
- trained in maths and natural history in Vienna
- worked in monastery gardens, observed characteristics passed onto next gen. in plants
- carried out breeding experiments on pea plants
- used smooth, wrinkled, green, yellow peas and observed offspring to see which characteristics they had inherited
2
Q
What were Mendel’s conclusions in 1866?
A
- offspring have some characteristics that their parents have because they inherit “hereditary units” from each
- one unit is received from each parent
- units can be dominant or recessive, and cannot be mixed together
3
Q
Why was Mendel not recognised till after his death?
A
- genes and chromosomes were not yet discovered so people could not understand
4
Q
What happened in the late 19th century?
A
- chromosomes as a part of cell division were observed
5
Q
What happened in the 20th century?
A
- it was understood that chromosomes and units had similar behaviours
- decided that units (now known as genes) were on chromosomes
6
Q
What happened in 1953?
A
- structure of DNA was determined
- meant we were able to understand how genes worked
