MENDELIAN

GENETICS

Laws of Inheritance
Genetics is the scientific study of
heredity
Gregor Mendel
Born in 1822 in
Czechoslovakia.
Became a monk at a
monastery in 1843.
Taught biology and
had interests in
statistics.
Also studied at the
University of Vienna
After returning to the
monastery he
continued to teach
and worked in the
garden.
Between 1856 and
1863 he grew and
tested over 28,000
pea plants
Gregor Mendel conducted experiments to
answer one of the fundamental questions
of heredity:

What are the basic patterns in the

transmission of traits from parents to
offspring?
INHERITANCE OF A
SINGLE TRAIT
• The plants being mated differ in just one
trait.
• One plant is Homozygous for dominant
purple flower; the other is homozygous for
a recessive white flower.

How will we
arrange the
genotype for
this grid?
 Exercise 1
Predict the phenotypes of the offspring. Drag the
correct phenotypes to each square in the grid.
 1 Removed stamens
from purple flower

2
Transferred sperm-
bearing pollen from
stamens of white
flower to egg-
bearing carpel of
purple flower

Parental
generation
(P)

Stamens
Carpel (male)
(female)
3 Pollinated carpel
matured into pod

4 Planted seeds
from pod

5 Examined
offspring:
First all purple
generation flowers
offspring
(F1)
All of the offspring have the same flower
phenotype as the purple-flowered plants
in the parental generation.

In the offspring called the F1 generation,

the white phenotype disappears.
If we mate these heterozygous plants to
each other or allow them to self pollinate..

What kinds of offspring would

you expect?
 Exercise 2
Using the information provided, predict the genotypes of the
offspring. Drag the correct genotypes to each square in the grid.
 Exercise 3
Using the information provided, predict the
phenotypes of the offspring. Drag the correct
phenotypes to each square in the grid.
Inheritance of One Trait:
Conclusion
The 1st series recaps the
results of a mating in which
the parent plants differ in a
single trait. The parent
plants are homozygous for
the dominant and recessive
alleles.

Their F1 offspring are

heterozygous and show the
dominant purple flower
phenotype.
The next generation, called the F2
generation, reveals a 3:1 ratio of
phenotypes.

The recessive white-flowered phenotype

reappears in this generation after having
disappeared in the F1 generation
INHERITANCE OF
TWO TRAITS
• The two series of crosses shown here illustrate a mating
of peas in which the parent plants differ in two traits.
• These traits are round versus wrinkled texture and
yellow versus green color.
• Each cross yields a 3:1 ratio of phenotypes in the F2
generation
If two heterozygous F1 plants were crossed…

What genotypes and phenotypes would

result?
• The round yellow pea
has dominant R alleles
for a round phenotype
and dominant Y alleles
for a yellow phenotype.
• The wrinkled green pea
has recessive r alleles
for a wrinkled phenotype
and recessive y alleles
for a green phenotype.
 Exercise 1
Predict the genotype in each square of the grid.
 Exercise 2
Predict the phenotypes of the offspring in each
square of the grid.
❑ Notice that all of the F1 individuals show the
dominant yellow and round phenotypes.
❑ The recessive alleles in this generation are
present, but the dominant alleles mask the
recessive phenotype.
If we mate F1 individuals to each other, or
allow them to self pollinate…

What kinds of offspring would you

expect?
 Exercise 3
Drag the correct gametes to the two sides of the
Punnet square
 Exercise 4
Predict the phenotypes of the F2 offspring.
Inheritance of two traits:
Conclusion

❑ When the genes for two traits are

considered, the F2 plants have
phenotypes in a ratio of 9:3:3:1
9 are round and yellow
Three are round and green
Three are wrinkled and yellow
One is wrinkled and green
 According to Mendel’s principle of
independent assortment, the genes behave
independently of each other during meiosis,
resulting in this predictable ratio of
phenotype in the offspring
Although our crossed involve a difference in two
traits, we can examine each trait individually to
see the typical 3:1 ratios of single trait crosses.
❑ There are 12 round peas and 4 wrinkled
peas, or a ratio of 3 round peas for every
wrinkled pea.
❑ There are also 12 yellow peas and 4 green
peas, or a ratio of 3yellow peas for every
green pea.