bio genetics Flashcards
Genetics
the passing of traits from parents to offspring
Genes
instructions in DNA that determine traits
Trait
an inherited characteristic (eye colour, hair colour, etc)
Gregor Mendel
An Austrian monk, made the first discoveries about how traits are inherited by studying pea plants
Alleles
different versions of a gene
Dominant Allele
an allele that is fully expressed. Symbolized
by a capital letter
Recessive Allele
an allele that is hidden when paired with a
dominant allele. Symbolized by the SAME
letter, but a lowercase one
Genotype
what forms of genes you have
Phenotype
what traits you physically show
Homozygous
The alleles of a gene are the same from both parents. (WW, ww)
Heterozygous
Different alleles from parents. (Ww)
Laws of heredity
Law of Segregation- inherited traits are determined by pairs of alleles, one from the sperm and one from the egg
Law Of Dominance - one allele for a trait is dominant and one is recessive. The dominant one, if present, can hide
the recessive one
Incomplete Dominance
Neither allele can completely hide the
other
superscripts (C^R)
Codominance
occurs when both alleles are fully expressed
ex: black and white cows
Polygenic Genes
traits that are controlled by multiple genes
ex: skin colour
Chromosome
An organism’s DNA is divided into strings in the nucleus
Humans have 23 pairs of chromosomes for a total of 46
Chromatin
loose strands of DNA, found in interphase
Chromatids
duplicated DNA that are attached together by a centromere
Somatic (body) cells
are diploid (46 chromosomes in humans)
Diploid
2 sets of chromosomes
Gamete (sex) cells
are haploid (23 chromosomes)
Haploid
1 set of chromosomes