GENETICS

 Genetics is a branch of biology that studies biological information. Genetics deals with
the mechanism of heredity.
 Heredity refers to the passing of characteristics from parents to offspring.
 Hereditary characteristics are the traits that can be passed on form one generation to
another.

VARIATIONS:
All living things possess characteristics that make them similar or different from one another.
Inherited characteristics are the causes of similarities.
Differences among individuals belonging to the same species are called variations.
IT ALL BEGAN WITH GARDEN PEAS
 Gregor Mendel used garden peas (Pisum sativum) to illustrate the mechanisms of
heredity.
 Allele is the alternative forms of the gene responsible for the expression of a trait.
 The traits of garden peas (Pisum sativum) studied by Mendel. He observed the
contrasting expressions (alleles) of each trait.
The garden pea is an ideal subject in the study of genetics for the following reasons:
 Presence of observable traits with contrasting forms.
 Produces many offspring in one cross.
 Short life cycle
 Ease in manipulating pollination (cross pollination)
MONOHYBRID INHERITANCE
 Monohybrid inheritance is the inheritance involving one pair of contrasting characters
(alleles).
 In monohybrid cross,
 Homozygous – when two similar alleles are present.
Ex. A pea plant having the same gene for purple-colored flowers. (PP or pp)
 Heterozygous – when two different alleles are present
Ex. A pea plant with one gene for purple-colored and one gene for white-colored
flower. (Pp)
  Pure-breeding varieties are plants, that when self-fertilized, produce only one form of a
particular trait. These pure-breeding plants served as the parental generation in Mendel’s
experiments.
 Pure-breeding varieties are plants, that when self-fertilized, produce only one form of a
particular trait. These pure-breeding plants served as the parental generation in
Mendel’s experiments.
 The parental generation (represented as P1) refers to the first two individuals that are
crossed in a breeding experiment.
 When members of the first filial generation ( F 1) are used as parents in a next cross, their
resulting offspring is referred to as second filial generation ( F 2)
 The two-pure breeding parents (P generation) are represented as PP and PP for purple and
white, respectively.
 In this example of cross,
 Phenotype – the observable expressions of the trait (purple or white flowers).
 Genotype – the factors of the genes located inside the nucleus of the cells of the
plants that are responsible for the observed trait.
 The symbols P and p represent the alleles present in an individual. Because each
individual has two alleles for a gene ( one in each chromosome), the genotype for flower
color may be represented as PP (pure-breeding purple), pp (white), or Pp (hybrid purple).
When Mendel cross pollinated the two P generation garden peas, he observed that all are purple-
flowered plants. The resulting purple flower plants are referred to as the first filial generation F 1.
n the given cross,
 Dominant trait – the observed trait in the F 1 (purple flower).
 Recessive trait – the trait that is not observed (white allele).
 Purple-flowered plants are represented using the symbols PP (in the P1) and Pp
(in the F1),
 Homozygous dominant – carrying two dominant alleles (genotype PP)
 Heterozygous – one dominant allele (P) and one recessive allele (p) (genotype Pp)
 Homozygous recessive or recessive – white-flowered plant (pp).
THE LEGACY OF MENDEL
 The hypotheses of Mendel are referred to as LAWS OF HEREDITY. The
generalizations proposed by Mendel are often called Mendelian Postulates. These
postulates are sets of genetic laws and rules that explain factors affecting heredity. The
Mendelian postulates include:
 Role of unit factors
 Rule of dominance and recessiveness
 Law of segregation
 Law of independent assortment
 The Concept of Hereditary Factors