Mendelian Genetics

Chapter 12, part 1

 Gregor Mendel
• Born in 1822 in Moravia
(now part of the Czech
Republic.

• Son of a tenant farmer;

joined a monastery to
get an education.

• Deeply interested in
science, particularly
heredity.
• At the monastery in
Brno, Moravia,
Mendel received the
support of Abbot
Napp.

• From 1851-1855,
studied at the
University of
Vienna, but did not
receive a degree.
• What was understood at the time:

• Heredity appeared random and

unpredictable.

• Many traits seemed to blend in the

offspring, suggesting a liquid factor
controlled heredity.

• Yet some traits, such as red hair, did

not blend away.
• With Abbot Napp’s
encouragement, Mendel
studied heredity in peas,
carefully choosing traits
that did not appear to
blend. Collected data from
1856 - 1865.

• Mendel’s creative
contribution: he was the
first to follow single traits
from generation to
generation instead of trying
to document and follow
every trait in the plants.
• Mendel presented his
findings to the
Association of Natural
Research in Brno in 1865.

• Few people recognized

the significance of
Mendel’s research. His
quantitative methods
were uncommon at the
time, and the “blending”
theory was widely
accepted.
• In 1868, Mendel became
abbot of his monastery.

• His religious work left

little time for research,
which he set aside,
though he was always
convinced he had made
a valuable contribution
to science.
• Mendel died in 1884. Sixteen
years later, in 1900, his work
was rediscovered by Hugo
de Vries and others looking
for clues into the puzzle of
heredity.

• Though criticized in some

details, the main body of
Mendel’s work still stands.
 Mendel’s Laws

• A scientific law is an evidence-based

description of a natural phenomenon in
a given set of circumstances.
• Mendel’s three Laws of Heredity
describe what Mendel observed in
patterns of inherited traits.
Three Laws of Heredity

• Law of Dominance
• Law of Segregation
• Law of Independent Assortment
 Law of Dominance
• Traits are controlled by two factors that
can be called “dominant” or “recessive.”
• A “dominant” trait shows if the
offspring inherits at least one dominant
factor from one parent.
• A “recessive” trait shows only if the
offspring inherits two recessive factors,
one from each parent.
 X In this cross between two
purple-flowered pea plants,
one-quarter of the offspring
have white flowers.

Based just on this

information, which is
dominant: white or purple
flowers? How do you know?

Hint: “Dominance” is not based on numbers of individuals with

the trait. It is based on the number of copies of the allele that must
be inherited to show the trait.
The offspring of a purple-flowered pea plant and a white-flowered
pea plant all have purple flowers. The purple trait is dominant.
Why?
RR rr
pollen
Parental
generation (P)
pollen
cross-fertilize
true-breeding, true-breeding,
purple-flowered white-flowered
plant plant

First-generation
offspring (F1)
Rr
 Offspring of the F1 generation (the hybrids) may be purple-
flowered if they inherit at least one factor for purple flowers, or
may be white flowered if they inherit the white factor from both
parents.

First-
Rr Rr
X generation
offspring (F1)

RR Rr Rr rr

Second-
generation
offspring (F2)

3/4 purple 1/4 white

The purple-flowered trait is The white-flowered trait is
dominant because each an recessive because an
individual who inherits at individual must inherit two
least one copy of the purple copies of the white allele (r)
allele (R) shows the purple to show the white phenotype.
phenotype.

Same letter,
genotypes: RR or Rr rr different case =
same gene, different
phenotype purple white allele
 Solving problems involving dominance

Dexter has freckles. So does

his wife, Darla. Their son,
Dexter Darla
Derek has no freckles. Is freckles freckles
having freckles a dominant
or a recessive trait?
Derek
no freckles
 Law of Segregation

• Each individual has a pair of factors

controlling each trait, one inherited from
each biological parent.
• During the formation of gametes (sex
cells) these two factors separate. Only
one ends up in each sex cell.
In modern terms, the homozygous parents in the P generation
can pass one one kind of allele to their offspring.

homozygous parent gametes

gene

A A A A

Homologous chromosomes
The heterozygous parents of the F1 generation have two alleles
for the gene in question, and can pass one or the other, but not
both, to their offspring.

heterozygous parent gametes

gene

A a A a

Homologous chromosomes
 The genotypes can be represented with letters, which
symbolize the alleles: capital for dominant alleles, small case
for recessive.
purple parent

PP P + P

all P sperm and eggs

white parent

pp p + p

all p sperm and eggs

 When the gametes join to produce the F1 generation, all
offspring of homozygous dominant and homozygous recessive
parents are heterozygous.

F1
gametes of parents
offspring
sperm eggs

P + p Pp

or

p + P Pp
gametes from F2
F1 plants (Pp) The heterozygous F1
offspring
sperm eggs individuals can put either
P + P PP a dominant OR a
recessive allele in each of
their gametes.
P + p Pp

p + P Pp

p + p pp
A Punnet square is one way Pp
self-fertilize
to predict the outcome of a
cross by showing all the 1/2 P eggs 1/2 p
possible combinations of all
the possible gametes. 1/2 P

1/4 PP 1/4 Pp

sperm
1/2 p

1/4 pP 1/4 pp
 Solving single-gene (monohybrid) crosses with Mendelian
(dominant-recessive) inheritance.

Tomato fruit color can be red or

yellow.
a. A red tomato plant is crossed
with a yellow tomato plant, and
all the offspring have red
tomatoes. Which trait is
dominant?
b. If two of the resulting hybrid
red tomato plants are crossed,
what will be the ratio of
phenotypes in the offspring?
 Solving single-gene (monohybrid) crosses with Mendelian
(dominant-recessive) inheritance.

Tomato fruit color can be red or

yellow.
a. A red tomato plant is crossed
with a yellow tomato plant, and
all the offspring have red
tomatoes. Which trait is
dominant?
b. If two of the resulting hybrid
red tomato plants are crossed,
what will be the ratio of
phenotypes in the offspring?
Law of Independent Assortment

• When genetic factors segregate in the

gametes, they segregate independently
of one another. A dominant allele for
one trait does not guarantee inheritance
of a dominant allele for a different trait.
 Trait Dominant form Recessive form
Seed
shape
smooth wrinkled
Seed
All organisms have multiple color yellow green

inheritable traits controlled by Pod

shape
inflated constricted
genes. Pod
color green yellow

Each trait is inherited Flower

color

independently of the others. A purple white

pea plant may, for example, Flower

location
at leaf
have yellow seeds (dominant) junctions
at tips of
branches

but white flowers (recessive).

Plant
size
tall dwarf
(1.8 to (0.2 to 0.4
2 meters) meters)
 S
s pairs of alleles on homologous
chromosomes in diploid cells
Y
y

chromosomes
replicate
replicated homologues
Y pair during metaphase y
Traits carried on separate S of meiosis I,
orienting like this
S

chromosomes sort s y
or like this
s Y

independently of one meiosis I

another during gamete S Y s y S y s Y

S y
formation. S Y s y s Y

meiosis II

S S s s S S s s
Y Y y y y y Y Y

independent assortment produces four equally

likely allele combinations during meiosis

Notice that each gamete receives ONE s-bearing and ONE y-

bearing chromosome from the original cell.
 Now consider this in terms of S
genotypes: s
Y
y
Genotype of this parent chromosomes
(for these two traits) is replicate
replicated homologues
Y pair during metaphase y
SsYy S of meiosis I,
orienting like this
S

or like this
s y s Y
meiosis I
Meiosis puts ONE S-
S Y s y S y s Y
bearing and one Y-bearing S Y s y S y s Y
chromosome in each meiosis II
gamete. S S s s S S s s
Y Y y y y y Y Y

Genotypes of the gametes independent assortment produces four equally

likely allele combinations during meiosis

that this parent can produce SY sy Sy sY

are:
 SsYy
self-fertilize
This Punnet square shows a eggs
cross between two pea plants 1/4 SY 1/4 Sy 1/4 sY 1/4 sy

which are heterozygous for two 1/4 SY

traits. 1/16 SSYY 1/16 SSYy 1/16 SsYY 1/16 SsYy

1/4 Sy

sperm
1/16 SSyY 1/16 SSyy 1/16 SsyY 1/16 Ssyy

Again, the Punnet square 1/4 sY

represents all possible 1/16 sSYY 1/16 sSYy 1/16 ssYY 1/16 ssYy

combinations of the gametes 1/4 sy

1/16 sSyY 1/16 sSyy 1/16 ssyY 1/16 ssyy

that the plants can donate to seed shape seed color phenotypic ratio
(9:3:3:1)
their offspring. They must put 3/4 smooth  3/4 yellow = 9/16 smooth yellow

one copy of a gene for each 3/4 smooth 

1/4 wrinkled 
1/4 green = 3/16 smooth green
3/4 yellow = 3/16 wrinkled green
trait in their gametes. 1/4 wrinkled  1/4 green = 1/16 wrinkled yellow
 Solving dihybrid crosses with Mendelian (dominant-
recessive) inheritance.

Pea plants can be tall (T) or

short (t) and produce purple (R)
or white (r) blossoms.
a. A pure-breeding tall plant
with purple flowers (TTRR) is
crossed with a pure-breeding
short plant with white flowers
(ttrr). What will the offspring
look like?
b. If two of the hybrid (F1)
plants are crossed, what
offspring can they produce?
 Solving dihybrid crosses with Mendelian (dominant-
recessive) inheritance.

Pea plants can be tall (T) or

short (t) and produce purple (R)
or white (r) blossoms.
a. A pure-breeding tall plant
with purple flowers (TTRR) is
crossed with a pure-breeding
short plant with white flowers
(ttrr). What will the offspring
look like?
b. If two of the hybrid (F1)
plants are crossed, what
offspring can they produce?
Laws: “proven” forever?
• Mendel’s Laws were good descriptions
of what he observed in the peas and
other plants he worked with.
• New knowledge accumulated since
Mendel’s time has refined his ideas.
While his laws still hold true in some
instances, there are many exceptions
that we will explore in the next
presentations.
 Recap
• Genes may have multiple alleles, such as
dominant and recessive alleles.
• Chromosomes, which carry genes,
separate from one another during
gamete formation.
• Chromosomes sort independently of
one another during gamete formation,
but each gamete gets ONE of each kind
of chromosome.