I.

TITTLE : POLYGEN

II. OBJECTIVE :

1. TO observ the variation of human nature, especially the physical properties

(phenotype) of Faculty Mathematics And Natural Science in State University of
Medan
2. To Compared the most common physical differences in 100 volunteers
3. To make a graph based on the results of data retrieval done
4. To describes the difference between quantitative genetics and qualitative genetics
5. To Know how to collect, analyze and interpret research data on quantitative
inheritance.
III. THEORITICAL RIVIEW :

A polygene, multiple factor, multiple gene inheritance or quantitative gene is a member

of a group of non-epistatic genes that interact additively to influence a phenotypic trait. The term
"polygene" is usually used to refer to a hypothetical gene as it is often difficult to characterise the
effect of an individual gene from the effects of other genes and the environment on a particular
phenotype. Advances in statistical methodology and high throughput sequencing are, however,
allowing researchers to locate candidate genes for the trait. (Ricki Lewis, 2003)

Human features like height, eye color, and hair color come in lots of slightly different
forms because they are controlled by many genes, each of which contributes some amount to the
overall phenotype. Height and other similar features are controlled not just by one gene, but
rather, by multiple (often many) genes that each make a small contribution to the overall
outcome. This inheritance pattern is sometimes called polygenic inheritance (poly- = many). For
instance, a recent study found over 400 genes linked to variation in height.
(Wood, A. R et all., 2014)

Characteristics of polygenic inheritance: (1) A substitution at one locus usually produces

the same effect on the phenotype as a substitution at another. (2) Many loci with small, additive
effects. (3) Tall parents can produce a short child, etc (4). Average parents can produce a tall or
short child. Most of our understanding of the genetic basis of human adaptation is biased toward
loci of large phenotypic effect. Because of the environment in height, for example, nutritional
differences can play a major role in variation. (Berg, Jeremy J, et all. 2017)

Human skin colour is controlled by the complex interplay of many different genetic
variants, many of which control production and cellular arrangement of melanin; which have
been molded by the environment and selection pressures in different regions of the world over
thousands of years. Thus skin colour does indeed have a biologic or genetic basis. The notion of
race is a discriminatory socio-political concept which cannot be scientifically assigned based on
skin colour. The Sarah Laing story should serve as a tragic reminder of the futility of racial
classification and prevent the use of DNA profiling from straying into discriminatory practices.
Normal skin colour is a polygenic trait, following a multifactorial pattern of inheritance under
the control of an interacting set of genes and environmental influences, eg, skin darkening
(tanning) induced by sunlight. (SAASTA TEAM, 2014)

Each persons fingerprints are unique, which is why they have long been used as a way to
identify individuals.. A persons fingerprints are based on the patterns of skin ridges (called
dermatoglyphs) on the pads of the fingers. The basic size, shape, and spacing of dermatoglyphs
appear to be influenced by genetic factors. Studies suggest that multiple genes are involved, so
the inheritance pattern is not straightforward. Genes that control the development of the various
layers of skin, as well as the muscles, fat, and blood vessels underneath the skin, may all play a
role in determining the pattern of ridges. The finer details of the patterns of skin ridges are
influenced by other factors during fetal development, including the environment inside the
womb. These developmental factors cause each persons dermatoglyphs to be different from
everyone elses. Even identical twins, who have the same DNA, have different fingerprints.
Three principal types of fingerprint patterns: (a) arch with no triradius and a ridge count of 0; (b)
loop with one triradius and a ridge count of 12 and (c) whorl with two triradii and a ridge count
of 15 (the higher of the two possible counts). (Kendal, 1983)

Berg, Jeremy J, et all. 2017. Polygenic Adaptation has Impacted Multiple Anthropometric Traits.
Columbia: Columbia University

Kendal. 1983. Reproduced with permission of the Biological Sciences Curriculum Study from
Basic genetics: A human approach. . Dubuque, IA: Hunt Publishing Co
Ricki Lewis (2003), Multifactorial Traits, McGraw-Hill Higher Education

SAASTA TEAM. 2014. Genetic of Skin Colour. South African: The South African Agency for
Science and Technology (SAASTA)
Wood, A. R., Esko, T., Yang, J., Vedantam, S., Pers, T. H., Gustafsson, S., ... Frayling, T. M.
2014. Defining the role of common variation in the genomic and biological architecture of adult
human height. Nature Genetics, 46, 1173-1186