Heredity – Notes

Q.1) If a trait A exists in 10% of a population of an asexually reproducing

species and a trait B exists in 60% of the same population, which trait is
likely to have arisen earlier ?

Ans) :In a population of asexually reproducing species, the chances of

appearance of new trait is very low. In asexual reproduction , the traits
which are present in parental generation are carried over to progeny with
minimal variation
Since trait B, is present in more members of the population, It is likely to
have arisen earlier and has now spread to 60% of the population. Trait A is
new and has spread to only 10% of the population.

Q.2) How does the creation of variations in a species promote survival ?

Ans) Variation occur when sexual reproduction is happening as the

gametes formed have different genes and these genes segregate
according to their will.
The variations provide stability to the population of various species by
preventing them from getting wiped out during adverse or unfavorable
environmental conditions.
The natural environment also changes, and variations in species which
become suited to the environment help it to survive.

Q.3) How do Mendel’s experiments show that traits may be dominant or

recessive ?

Ans) Mendel took pea plants with contrasting characteristics tall plant and
dwarf plant.
1) On cross pollination, he got all tall plants in first generation (F1).
2) On self¬pollination of F1 tall plants, the plants of second generation
consisted of tall and short pants in the ratio of 3 : 1.
On the basis of this experiment, the characteristics appeared in first
generation were called dominant (i.e. tall plants) and the characteristics
that did not appear were called recessive ( i.e. dwarf plants).
Q.4) How is the sex of the child determined in human beings ?:

Ans) Sex of the child is dependent on the type of the male gamete that
fuses with the female gamete. Human being possess 23 pairs of
chromosomes. Out of these, 22 pairs are known as autosomes, while the
remaining one pair called as sex chromosomes. XX in female and XY
in male are the sex chromosomes.

When a sperm fertilizes an egg, the following situations become possible.

1. (i) When a sperm carrying X chromosome fertilises an egg that

contains only X chromosome), the resulting zygote develops into a
female (XX condition).
2. (ii) When a sperm carrying Y chromosome fertilises an egg (that
contains only X chromosome), the resulting zygote develops into a
male (XY condition).

Thus there are 50 % or 1:1 chances of a male or female child and none of
the parents may Sex determination in humans be considered responsible
for it.

Father X Mother (Parents)

X Y X X (Gametes)

XX XY XX XY

(Daughter) (Son) (Daughter) (Son)

Q. 5) Differentiate between Dominant and Recessive trait.

Ans)

Dominant Trait Recessive Trait

1).The trait which appears in the F1 1) The trait which does not appear in
progeny is dominant the F1 progeny is recessive trait
2) It appears in more numbers 2) It appears in less number.(25%)
(75%)

6) Seven pairs of contrast characters in garden pea selected by

Mendel were:

Characters Dominant Trait Recessive Trait

Flower colour Violet White
Flower position Axillary Terminal
Seed colour Yellow Green
Seed shape Round Wrinkled
Pod shape Inflated Constricted
Pod colour Green Yellow
Height of plant Tall Dwarf/ Short

Q.7)) How do Mendel’s experiments show that traits are inherited

independently ?

Or

Show inheritance of two characters by making a cross between tall and

round seeded plant with short and wrinkled seeded plant.

Ans) Mendel took two pairs of alternate expression of two traits and carried
out dihybrid crosses by crossing them.

i) When a cross was made between a Tall pea plant with round seeds and
short pea plant with wrinkled seeds,the F1 progeny plants are tall with
round seeds.This indicates that tallness and round seeds are the dominant
traits,

ii) When the F1 plants are self- pollinated , the F2 progeny consist of some
tall plants with round seeds and some short plants with wrinkled seeds.

iii) There was also some new combinations like Tall plants with wrinkled
seeds and some short plants with round seeds

Thus it may be concluded that tall and short traits and round and wrinkled
seed traits have been inherited independently.

Flow chart diagram:

Tall , round seed Short, wrinkled seed

TTRR X ttrr (Parental generation