Case Study - Calico Cats

Chromosomes & Inheritance

Big Question 1:
Why are there no
male calico cats?
 CC (Carbon Copy) Rainbow

Big Question 2: Why do CC and Rainbow not look

exactly alike, even though they are clones?
Genes are found on chromosomes, in most
cases, you receive 2 alleles.

Shown is a human
karyotype which contains

22 pairs of autosomes
1 pair of sex chromosomes

1. When would a person only

have 1 allele for a trait?
Cat Karyotype

2. How is it similar to the

human karyotype?

How is it different?
The genes for coat color in cats are
located on the X chromosome.

Alleles can be:

Orange or Black

Alleles are codominant

3. What is Spaz’s genotype?

There are some rare
cases of male calico
cats.

Weird!
During meiosis, each egg
and sperm should receive
only one copy of each
chromosome (haploid)

4. Examine the graphic,

describe (in words) what
nondisjunction is.
5. If the gamete circled is
an egg that is fertilized by a
normal human sperm, how
many chromosomes will the
zygote have? How many
chromosomes is a human
zygote supposed to have?
The offspring ends up
having an extra
chromosome. Most of the
time, this is FATAL, but not
always.
Trisomy = extra
chromosome

Monosomy = one
chromosome of the
pair is missing

6. Can you identify the abnormality in this

karyotype of a girl with Turner Syndrome?
7. Genetic analysis can
be expensive, an x-ray
of this hand shows a
characteristic common
to someone with Turner
syndrome. Describe
the abnormality of this
hand. (Look carefully!)
8. What do male calico cats,
children with Down syndrome
and children with Turner
syndrome all have in common?
9. Now, answer the big
question. How is it possible to
have a male calico cat?
Use specific biological terms.
Big Question 2: Why do CC and Rainbow look
different even though they are clones?

Consider how color is

expressed on a calico cat.

Some areas express orange,

some black….

It seems oddly random.

A Barr body (named after discoverer Murray Barr) is
the inactive X chromosome in a female somatic cell,
rendered inactive in a process called lyonization, in
those species in which sex is determined by the
presence of the Y
10. How do Barr Bodies explain CC and Rainbow?
CC (Carbon Copy) Rainbow
11. Consider a male
calico cat. Do you think
this calico would have
cognitive disabilities
similar to those found in
children with Down
Syndrome. Why or Why
not?