Genetics & Heredity

Who was Gregor Mendel?

Austrian monk who studied mathematics and science As a boy he could predict the possible types of flowers and fruits that would result from crossbreeding two plants in his father’s garden

Who was Gregor Mendel? Curiosity about the connection between the color of a pea flower and the type of seed that same plant produced inspired him to begin experimenting with garden peas in Made careful use of scientific methods, which resulted in the first recorded study of how traits pass from one generation to the next.

What is GENETICS?

The study of how traits are inherited through the interactions of genes.

What is a GENE?

The material that controls which traits are expressed in an organism Genes come in pairs and offspring inherit one copy of each gene from each parent

Define the following terms: Heredity Allele Trait

Define HEREDITY The passing of traits from parent to offspring

Define ALLELE The different forms of a trait that a gene may have One form of a gene

Define TRAIT Characteristics – can be physical or behavioral Traits that are genetic are passed down through the genes from parents to offspring

Describe RECESSIVE

A trait that is covered over, or dominated, by another form of that trait and seems to disappear Hidden when the other copy of the gene contains the dominant allele. A recessive allele shows up only when there is no dominant allele present Shown with a lower-case letter

Describe DOMINANT

A trait that covers over, or dominates, another form of that trait Trait that always shows up, even when only one of the two alleles is in the dominant form Shown by a capital letter

Define GENOTYPE

An organism's genetic makeup

Define PHENOTYPE

Outward physical appearance and behavior of an organism

Heredity Traits are controlled by alleles on chromosomes An allele’s effect is dominant or recessive