Modifications to Mendelian

Genetics
 Lesson Objectives:
• differentiate Mendelian and non-
Mendelian modes of inheritance;
• describe some cases of non-Mendelian
genetic traits
 Non-mendelian Genetics
• Some traits don’t follow the simple
dominant/recessive rules that Mendel first applied to
genetics.
• Traits can be controlled by more than one gene.
• Some alleles are neither dominant nor recessive.
Types of
Non-
Mendelian
Genetics
 Incomplete Dominance
• F1 hybrids have an appearance
somewhat in between the phenotypes of
the two parental varieties.
Example: snapdragons (flower)
red (RR) x white (rr)
RR = red flower
rr = white flower
Incomplete Dominance
Incomplete Dominance
• no allele is
completely dominant
over the other.
• the two traits blend to
form another trait.
sample problem:
A blue scaled fish is incompletely dominant to a yellow
scaled fish. What are the possible phenotypes and genotypes
of the offspring?

If two fish are crossed from the F1 generation, what are the
possible phenotypes and genotypes of the offspring?
 Codominance
• Two alleles are both expressed
as a dominant phenotype
• Coat color in cows
RR: Red
WW: White
RW: Roan, white with red spots
(NOT pink!)
 sample problem:
In a population of dogs, brown fur
and black fur is codominant.
Determine the genotypes and
phenotypes of the offspring.
Multiple Allele Series
 What is blood made up of?
• Red Blood Cells
- contain hemoglobin
- transport O2 and CO2 to and from body
tissues
• White blood Cells
- fights infection
• Platelets
- blood clotting factor
• Plasma
- fluid which contains salts and various kinds
of proteins
 Genes and the Immune System
• Genes are so varied, they provide us with
our genetic finger print.
• Important for our immune system
• If a blood, which is incompatible with your
body, is transfused it will result to the
agglutination of the foreign red blood
cells.
Agglutination Test
 Determining Blood Type

• Protein molecules found on the surface of RBC’s and

in the blood plasma determine the blood type of an
individual.

Antigens are located on the surface of the red blood cells

Antibodies are in the blood plasma
 The ABO blood System

• controlled by a tri-allelic gene

A, B and O (recessive)
• The alleles for antigens are found on the surface of
the red blood cells
• Two of the alleles (A and B) are codominant to one
another and both are dominant over the third (O).
• allele IA produces antigen A
• allele IB produces antigen B
• allele i produces no antigen
The ABO blood System
 What are the different blood groups?
• Blood Group A (IA, IA), (IA, i)
have A antigens on the surface of red
blood cells and B antibodies in blood plasma.

• Blood Group B (IB, IB), (IB, i)

have B antigens on the surface of red
blood cells and A antibodies in blood plasma.
 What are the different blood groups?
• Blood group AB (IA, IB ) have both A
and B antigens on the surface of red
blood cells and no A or B antibodies in
blood plasma.

• Blood group O (i, i) have neither A or

B antigens on the surface of red blood
cells but have both A and B antibodies
in blood plasma.
Blood Transfusion Compatibility
 Result of Blood Typing
Anti-A Serum Anti-B Serum Blood Type

Agglutination (+) Non-agglutination (-) A

Non-agglutination (-) Agglutination (+) B

Agglutination (+)
Agglutination (+) AB

Non-agglutination (-) Non-agglutination (-) O

 Sample Problem:
Both Mrs. Santos and Mrs. Cruz had babies on the same
day in the same hospital. Mrs. Santos took home a baby
girl, whom she named Sharon. Mrs. Cruz took home a
baby girl, whom she named Shane. Mrs. Cruz began to
suspect, however, that the child had been accidentally
switched with Mrs. Santos’ baby in the nursery. Blood tests
were made; Mr. Santos was type A, Mrs. Santos was type
B, Mr. Cruz was type A, and Mrs. Mrs. Cruz was type A.
Sharon was type O, and Shane was type B. had a mix-up
occurred? Show your complete solution and organize the
details of your solution.
 Rh Factor
• Refers to another antigen on red blood
cells
• Inherited protein found on the surface of
red blood cells
• Dominant trait is to have the antigen Rh +

• Recessive trait is not to have it Rh-

• A person with Rh- blood will produce
antibodies to Rh+ blood
Rh+ blood types can receive blood from Rh- however, Rh-
blood types cannot receive Rh+ blood types.
Rh Blood Group Can give blood to Can receive blood from

AB+ AB+ AB+, A+, B+, O+, AB-, A-, B-,O-

A+

B+

O+

AB-

A-

B-

O-
Rh+ blood types can receive blood from Rh- however, Rh- blood
types cannot receive Rh+ blood types.
Rh Blood Group Can give blood to Can receive blood from

AB+ AB+ AB+, A+, B+, O+, AB-, A-, B-,O-

A+ A+ , AB+ A+, A -, O+, O-

B+ B+, AB+ B+, B-, O+, O-

O+ A+, B+, AB+, O+ O+, O-

AB- AB+, AB- AB-, A-, B-, O-

A- A+, A-, AB+, AB- A-, O-

B- B+, B-, AB+, AB- B-, O-

O- AB+, A+, B+, O+, AB-, A-, B-,O- O-

 Rh Factor
• Rh + is the most common blood type
• Having an Rh – blood type can affect pregnancy
https://educationalgames.nobelprize.org/educational/m
edicine/bloodtypinggame
 Sample Problem:
A patient was rushed to the hospital and needed
an immediate blood transfusion. You were the
medical technologist on duty and you performed a
blood test to confirm the blood type of the patient.
Based on the test, it showed an agglutination to
Anti- A, non-agglutination to Anti- B, and non-
agglutination to anti- D serum. What is the blood
type of the patient? Supposed your hospital runs
out of that blood type, what other possible blood
types can be transfused to the patient?
 Sex-linked traits
• Traits (genes) located on the sex
chromosomes
• Sex chromosomes are X and Y
• XX genotype for females
• XY genotype for males
• Many sex-linked traits carried on X
chromosome
 Thomas Hunt Morgan
• Father of Modern Genetics
• He studied the pattern of
eye color in fruit flies
(Drosophila melanogaster)
which gave birth to sex-
linked traits
Trait:
Eye color

Alleles:
X X – Red-eyed female
R R

X X – Red-eyed female, carrier

R r

X X – white-eyed female
r r

X Y – red-eyed male
R

X Y – white-eyed male
r
 Other sex-linked traits:

• Color blindness

• Hemophilia
 Genotypes of Colorblindness:

XX – female with normal eyes

XX – female with normal eyes, carrier
C

X X – colorblind female
C C

XY – male with normal eyes

X Y – colorblind male
C
 Hemophilia

• also known as the bleeder’s disease or royal

disease
• inherited disease in which the person’s blood
does not clot easily
• recessive inherited disorder caused by a
defective gene on the X chromosome
 Genotypes of Hemophilia:

XX – normal female
XX – normal female, carrier
h

X X – hemophiliac female
h h

XY – normal male
X Y – hemophilia male
h
 Who among the Disney
Princesses is hemophiliac?

44
Princess Aurora, in the Disney movie Sleeping
Beauty, actually suffers from the royal blood
disease, also known as hemophilia. Since Aurora is
hemophiliac, what are the genotypes of her
parents?
 Sex-influenced Traits
• Baldness

• are caused by genes that act differently in

males and females.
 Practice
Problems
A woman is color-blind and marries a man
with normal vision. What are the chances that
her sons will be color-blind? What are the
chances that her daughters will be color-blind?
Will be carriers?
Marie is a daughter of a man with hemophilia.
Hemophilia, which is also known as the Royal
blood disease, is the inability of the blood to
clot. She marries a man, Mario, who is normal
for the trait. What is the chance of their
daughter becoming a hemophiliac?
 Assume that brown eyes B are dominant over blue
eyes b and right handedness R is dominant over left
handedness r. A left handed , brown eyed woman ,
hailing from a family having brown eyed members for
several generations, is married to a right handed, blue
eyed man whose father was brown eyed and left handed.
Can you predict the appearance of children to be
expected from this couple as to the two traits
mentioned?