Classical (Mendelian) Genetics

Is inheritance blending or particulate?

1. In the mid 19th century,biologists believed that inheritance was blending, that is, traits of offspring were the average of their parents. 2. Problematic because new genetic variations would quickly be diluted and could not be accumulated and passed to subsequent generations as theory of evolution predicted.

3. Blending inheritance was quickly discredited by Gregor Mendels experiments, which showed that inheritance is particulate.

Responsible for the Laws governing Inheritance of Traits

Gregor Johann Mendel
(1822-1884)

 Monk at Brno Monastery in Austria (now Czech Republic) Not a great teacher but well trained in math, statistics, probability, physics, and interested in plants and heredity. While assigned to teach, he was also assigned to tend the gardens and grow vegetables for the monks to eat.

Site of Gregor Mendels experimental garden

Mendels Pea Plant Experiments

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Why peas, Pisum sativum?

Mountains with short, cool growing season meant pea (Pisum sativum) was an ideal crop plant. Can be grown in a small area Produce lots of offspring Produce pure plants when allowed to self-pollinate several generations Can be artificially crosspollinated

Reproduction in Flowering Plants

Pollen contains sperm Produced by the stamen Ovary contains eggs Found inside the flower Pollen carries sperm to the eggs for fertilization Self-fertilization can occur in the same flower Cross-fertilization can occur between flowers

Mendel

hand-pollinated flowers using a paintbrush He could snip the stamens to prevent self-pollination Covered each flower with a cloth bag He traced traits through the several generations

Genetic Terminology
Trait : any characteristic that can be passed from parent to offspring Heredity : passing of traits from parent to offspring Genetics : study of heredity Allele : Alternate forms of a gene/factor (e.g. R, r) Genotype : combination of alleles an organism has (e.g. RR,Rr,RR) Phenotype : How an organism appears (e.g. red, white) Dominant : An allele which is expressed (masks the other) Recessive : An allele which is present but remains unexpressed (masked) Homozygous : Both alleles for a trait are the same (e.g. RR or rr) Heterozygous : The organism's alleles for a trait are different (e.g. Rr)

Mendels Experiment
1. Began by self-fertilizing 34 different pea strains (phenotypes) so that they bred true (selfing, the opposite of cross-fertilization).

Mendels Experiment
2. Focused on 7 well-defined garden pea traits by crossing different phenotypes one at a time:
Flower/seed coat color : purple vs. white flowers grey vs. white seed coats (*controlled by single gene) Seed color : yellow vs. green Seed shape : smooth vs. wrinkled Pod color : green vs. yellow Pod shape : inflated vs. pinched (constricted) Stem height : tall vs. short (dwarf) Flower position : axial vs. terminal

Mendels Experiment
3. Counted offspring of each phenotype and analyzed the results mathematically. Between 1856 and 1863, Mendel cultivated and tested some 28.000 pea plants Mendel counted manually all of 7 well-defined garden pea traits and made the rati of each trait

What did Mendel find ?

Rule of Unit Factors Rule of Dominance Law of Segregation (First Mendels Law) Law of Independent Assortment (Second Mendels Law)

Another Basic Terminology

Generations: P = parental generation F1 = 1st filial generation, progeny of the P generation F2 = 2nd filial generation, progeny of the F1 generation (F3 and so on)
Crosses:
Monohybrid cross Dihybrid cross Reciprocal cross Test cross Back cross = cross of two different true-breeding strains (homozygotes) that differ in a single trait = cross of two different true-breeding strains (homozygotes) that differ in two traits = sexes for the two strains are reversed (and if the results are the same, trait is not sexlinked) = cross between an individual of unknown genotype and a homozygous recessive individual = cross between a hybrid organism (offspring of genetically unlike parents) with one of its parents

Test Cross

Reciprocal Cross

Back Cross

Genotype vs Phenotype

Rule of Unit Factors

Genetic characters are controlled by unit factors in pairs. In other words, genes are present in two associated copies in diploid organisms. For example, PP plants have two alleles for purple flower, pp plants have two alleles for white flower.

RULE OF UNIT DOMINANCE

In the case of unlike unit factors, one can be dominant and the other can be recessive. In other words, when two different alleles of a gene are present, one may show its effect while the other may be masked. For example, Yy plants have a yellow allele Y and a green allele y, but are phenotypically yellow.

The two alleles for a trait must separate when gametes are formed. Alleles for a trait are then "recombined" at fertilization, producing the genotype for the traits of the offspring. So, a parent randomly passes only one allele for each trait to each offspring . Inheritance is particulate, not blending as previously believed.

PUNNETT SQUARE
Use to help solve genetic problems

Smooth and wrinkled parental seed strains crossed. P x P Cross Represented with Punnett square F1 genotypes 4/4 Ss F1 phenotypes 4/4 smooth

F1 x F1 Cross Represented with Punnett square

F2 genotypes 1/4 SS 2/4 Ss 1/4 ss

F2 phenotypes 3/4 smooth 1/4 wrinkled

Crosses also can be represented with branching diagrams

Alleles for different traits are distributed to sex cells (& offspring) independently of one another. This law can be illustrated using dihybrid crosses.

Dihybrid cross: F1 generation

Dihybrid cross: F2 generation Ratio: 9:3:3:1

SUMMARY OF MENDELS LAWS

RULE / LAW
DOMINANCE

PARENT CROSS
TT x tt tall x short

OFFSPRING
100% Tt tall

SEGREGATION

Tt x Tt tall x tall

75% tall (TT, 2 Tt) 25% short (tt)

9/16 3/16 3/16 pods 1/16 pods round seeds & green pods round seeds & yellow pods wrinkled seeds & green

INDEPENDENT ASSORTMENT
COPYRIGHT CMASSENGALE

RrGg x RrGg round & green x round & green

wrinkled seeds & yellow

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Trihybrid crosses ?
1. Involve three independently assorting character pairs. 2. Results: 64 combinations of 8 different gametes 27 different genotypes 8 different phenotypes (2 x 2 x 2) Predicted ratio of phenotypes = 27:9:9:9:3:3:31

Laws of probability help explain Genetic Events Genetic ratios are most properly expressed as probabilities: ex. 3/4 tall: 1/4 dwarf

The probability of each zygote having the genetic potential for becoming tall is 3/4, etc..
Probabilities range from 0 (an event is certain NOT to happen), to 1.0 (an event is certain to happen). How do we calculate the probability of 2 or more events happening at the same time?

 For simultaneous outcomes (AND) What is the chance that you will roll snake eyes with two dice? (1 and 1) Chance of rolling 1 with first die = 1/6 Chance of rolling 1 with second die = 1/6 Chance of rolling two 1s = 1/6 X 1/6 = 1/36 We used product law when calculating probabilities by the forked-line method.

Product law

Sum law
For outcomes that can occur more than one way (OR) What is the chance that you will roll either a 1 or a 6 with one die? Chance of rolling 1 = 1/6 Chance of rolling 6 = 1/6 Chance of rolling 1 or 6 = 1/6 + 1/6 = 2/6 = 1/3

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