The Work of Mendel

Question 1

What did Mendel do?

Answer 1

He noted how characteristics in plants were passed on from one generation to the next.

Question 2

What had Mendel shown in his pea plant experiment?

Answer 2

• That the height characteristic, as well as other characteristics in pea plants was determined by separately inherited “heredity units” passed on from each parent.
• The ratios of tall and dwarf plants in the offspring showed that the unit for tall plants, T, was dominant over the unit for dwarf plants, t.

Question 3

What three conclusions did Mendel reach about heredity in plants?

Answer 3

1) Characteristics in plants are determined by “hereditary units”.
2) Hereditary units are passed on to offspring unchanged from both parents, one unit from each parent.
3) Hereditary units can be dominant or recessive - if an individual has both the dominant and the recessive unit for a characteristic, the dominant characteristic will be expressed.

Question 4

What are “hereditary units”?

Answer 4

Genes.