Lecture 12 Flashcards
Why are some alleles more common in certain populations?
The founder effect and the heterozygote advantage
What is the Founder Effect?
The loss of genetic variation that occurs when a new population is established by a very small number of individuals from a larger population
What is a Heterozygote Advantage?
A single copy of a disease allele confers an advantage. E.g. sickle cell anemia
What can’t physicians use to diagnose genetic crosses of their patients?
Mendelian Crosses
What do Physicians use to predict heredity of rare disease?
Family histories or pedigrees
What did Polygamy lead to?
Rare alleles from small groups to be widely spread
What is the Propositus?
The first case of a disease that comes to the attention of a doctor
What are the characteristics of an Autosomal recessive disorder in a pedigree?
The parents are unaffected (usually)
It can affect both males and females
Entire generations can be unaffected
More frequency when there is inbreeding
What is the inheritance of PKU?
Autosomal Recessive
What occurs in PKU?
There is a defect in Phenylalanine hydroxylase, a liver enzyme
Causes buildup of phenylalanine & phenylpyruvic acid in the body which affects the development of neurons
What can manage PKU?
Low protein diet
What are the characteristics of pedigrees with autosomal Dominant disorders?
Generally the disease appears in the parental generation
Tends to appear in every generation
Affected progeny includes males and females
What causes Pseudoachondroplasia?
Mutation in the COMP gene that affects the structural integrity of Cartilage. It is a dominant allele and the allele that causes it is homozygous lethal
What causes Achondroplasia?
Mutation in the FGFR3 that is a regulator of bone development. Also homozygous lethal
What is the inheritance of Piebald spotting?
Autosomal Dominant
What occurs in Piebald spotting?
It affects the migration of melanocytes from dorsal to ventral