LIF 101 Topic (1)

Laws of inheritance Part I

02 Feb 2022
 A short Background: Historical ideas
about heredity/inheritance

Preformation
N. Hartsoecker in 1695
What happened when you toss a
coin with head as P & tail as p
 Gregor Johann Mendel (1822–1884)
Priest in Augustinian Monastery in Brno, Czechoslovakia

 His work with peas laid the foundation for

genetics.   He was a University educated
priest He studied math and science.  He
returned to the monastery and taught high
school. He took care of the monastery’s
garden.

 He was curious why some plants were like

their parents & others were not. He cross
pollinated the pea plants by brushing
pollen from the stamens of one plant to the
pistil of another.

 Peas normally self pollinate so he had to

take the stamens that make pollen off the
About Mendel second plant.
 Flower:
Plant organ for sexual reproduction,
that produces gametes (sex cells)
and are necessary for fertilization to
occur

Note that there are

specialized organs
for reproduction
 First design an experiment
What is true
breeding?

Does purple
flowered
progeny mean
Filial blending of
inheritance?

Does this
results discard
blending of
inheritance?
What are P,
F1 and F2
 Second : Make assumptions based on the observations

 Characteristics “seen” in an individual

constitutes its phenotype (appearance).
Characteristic “present” in an individual
r, constitutes its genotype.
Note the terms: characte
trait, factors, dominant,
recessive, phenotype,
genotype.  Let’s now see if these assumptions
s
Can you define these term help explain the results
now?
Third : Explain the results based on the observations &
assumptions made

Explanation based on first laws of

probability:

The first Law of probability states that

the results of one chance event have no
effect on the results of subsequent (or
another) chance event. Thus, the
probability of obtaining heads
the second time you flip it remains at ½.

The second law of probability states

that the chances of two independent
white events happening together is the product
of their individual probability
Punnett square
 Third step contd:
Interpret results
Interpretations are based on the
assumptions made : factors
represent traits, there are two
factors for each trait in each
plant – one maternally derived
and the other paternally derived

Starting with PP and pp plants in the

second generation (F2) we will end up
with 3: 1 phenotypic ratio when the
factors (P, p) segregate from each
other during gamete formation

Note this term segregation:

Questions: What segregates? When
?
What is the evidence of their
segregation?
Genotypic and phenotypic ratios in F2 generations
 Let’s recall Mendel’s of law of segregation

1. Allele (factor) pairs segregate (separate)

during gamete formation, and randomly
unite at fertilization .
Let’s consider inheritance of two different pairs of factors
What Which one is
does R Character : texture of the seeds dominant?
and r Traits smooth (R ) and rough ( r)
mean?

Character : color of the seeds

Traits yellow (Y) and green (y)

If a plant is true breeding smooth and yellow – how

can we represent its genotype?

RRYY
If a plant is true breeding rough and green – how can we
represent its genotype?

rryy
7/22
 What will be the consequence if a true
breeding smooth and yellow plant is
crossed with another true breeding plant
which is rough and yellow?

P1 RRYY X rryy

8/22
 First,
find the
types of
gametes
that are
possible

Second,
speculate
the
outcome if
factors of
original
parent
segregate
together
9/22

Notice, however, that this

inheritance follows the law These results demands explanation based
of segregation on an another law of inheritance: namely,
the law of independent assortment
 Law of Independent assortment
(This law tells how different Mendelian factors are
distributed following segregation)

The Law of Independent Assortment

states that alleles of different genes
assort independently of one another
during gamete formation.

Alleles: each of two or more alternative

forms of a gene that arise by mutation
 Your homework:
P1 Explain the
applications of the
first and second
laws of probability
F1 during the
formation of the
gametes of the F1
F2
parent

The dihybrid ratio

 All wild type
F1

X =

Wild type
vestigial

female gamete/egg
Male gamete/sperm
Vg/Vg vg/vg
Vg/vg Vg/vg

white Vg/vg Vg/vg

curled
 F1
Wild type

Heterozygous
Vg/vg Vg/vg

Vg vg

Vg Vg/vg
Vg/Vg

vg Vg/vg vg/vg