MONOHYBRID CROSS (Inheritance of one gene)

A cross performed to study inheritance of one character/one pair of contrasting traits at a time is called
monohybrid cross.
Mendel in one of his crosses studied inheritance of height character in Pea plants. The cross is described
below.

Punnett Square/Checker board:

• Developed by Reginald C. Punnett
• Graphical representation to calculate the probability of all possible genotypes of offspring in a
genetic cross.
• The possible gametes are written on two sides usually the top row and left columns.
• All possible combinations are represented in boxes below in the squares, which generates a
square output form.

What is observed in Punnett square?

 1) The parental tall TT (male) and dwarf tt (female) plantas, the gametes produced by them are only
one type T and t respectively.
2) The F1 offspring are all tall progeny with Tt genotype.
3) The F1 plants of genotype Tt are self-pollinated.
4) The F1 plant of the genotype Tt when self-pollinated, produces gametes of the genotype T and t in
equal proportion.
5) When fertilisation takes place, the pollen grains of genotype T have a 50 per cent chance to
pollinate eggs of the genotype T, as well as of genotype t.
6) Also pollen grains of genotype t have a 50 per cent chance of pollinating eggs of genotype T, as well
as of genotype t.
7) The resultant zygotes can be of the genotypes TT, Tt or tt.
8) Hence, 1/4th of the random fertilisations leads to TT, 1/2nd lead to Tt and 1/4th to tt.
9) At F2, 3/4th plants are tall [where some of them are TT while others are Tt].
10) This leads to a phenotypic ratio of 3/4th tall-------> (1/4 TT + 1/2 Tt) and 1/4th tt, i.e., a 3:1
Phenotypic ratio.
11) But the genotypic ratio is-----> TT: Tt: tt= 1/4 : 1/2 : 1/4
12) This genotypic ratio is mathematically condensable to the form of the binomial expression (ax
+by)2, that has the gametes bearing genes T or t in equal frequency of ½.
The expression is expanded as given below :
(1/2T + 1/2 t) 2
= (1/2T + 1/2t) X (1/2T + 1/2t)
= 1/4 TT + 1/2Tt + 1/4 tt
=1:2:1
13) To determine the genotype of a tall plant at F2, Mendel crossed the tall plant from F2 with a dwarf
plant. This he called a test cross.

Test cross:
• When F1 progeny /individual of unknown genotype is crossed with recessive parent then it is
called test cross.
• The progenies of such a cross can easily be analysed to predict the genotype of the test organism.

❖ If all the F2 offspring are with dominant phenotype only, the organism is homozygous for the
respective alleles.
❖ If the F2 offspring show dominant and recessive phenotype in 1:1 ratio; the unknown genotype
is heterozygous.
Conclusions (results) of Monohybrid Cross
Ist Conclusion (Postulate of paired factors): According to Mendel:
1. Characters are controlled by discrete units called factors.
2. Factors occur in pairs.

2nd Conclusion (Law of Dominance):

• In a dissimilar pair of factors (two contrasting alleles) one member of the pair dominates
(dominant) the other (recessive). In the presence of dominant unit factor recessive unit factor
cannot express.
• This conclusion is based on F1 - generation.

Law of dominance: When two different unit factors (alleles) are present in single individual, only
one unit factor is able to express itself and known as dominant unit factor. The other unit factor
fails to express is the recessive factor.
There are two exceptions of law of dominance. [A] Incomplete dominance, [B] Co-dominance.

3rd Conclusion (Law of segregation): This law is based on the fact that:
• The alleles do not show any blending and that both the characters are recovered as such in the F2
generation even though one of these is not seen at the F1 stage.
• Though the F1 parents contain two alleles; during gamete formation the factors or alleles of a pair
segregate from each other such that a gamete receives only one of the two alleles. Thus gametes
are always pure.
• A homozygous parent produces all gametes that are similar while a heterozygous one produces two
kinds of gametes each having one allele with equal proportion.

Law of segregation: Factors of contrasting forms of characters are present in F1 hybrids for the
entire generation, but they do not show blending and when gametes are formed these factors
will segregate independently and only one factor will enter in a gamete.