Gregor Mendels

Discoveries

Father

Gregor Johann Mendel

of genetics
An Austrian monk and
biologist
His parents were
farmers
born on July 22, 1822
died on January 6, 1884
He was born Johann
Mendel.
When he entered the
monastery he was given
the name Gregor.
This monastery was the
Augustinian Order of St
Thomas.

He

attended the
University of Vienna to
get a teaching diploma
but he failed so he went
back to the monastery.
He

was also assigned

work as a hospital
chaplain, but found it
frustrating and difficult,
and soon returned to the
monastery.
He

Gregor Johann Mendel

had done research on

heredity with garden
peas from 1856 to 1868.
The results of his

His

works was ignored

for 34 years. Only after
the dramatic
rediscovery of
Mendel's work in 1900
(16 years after
Mendel's death) was
he rightfully
recognized as the
founder of genetics.

Gregor Johann Mendel

Why Peas?
Mendel experimented with garden peas. He chose peas
because:
1.
2.

3.

4.

5.

they grow quickly;

they reproduce by self-pollination. This means
that the pea flowers have both male and female
parts;
they also possess characteristics that can easily
be recognized like height, color of the flowers,
and shapes of seed;
pollination could be controlled in this group of
plants with minimum work. This meant that he
could develop plants that always produce seeds
with the same traits and;
garden peas could also produce enough offspring
to conduct a study.

Part of the Flowers

Male Parts of the Flower

Female Parts of the Flower

How did Mendel make a cross

pollination?

First filial generation or F1 Generation

offspring that result from a cross between two pure
breeding plants
Dominant traits traits that appeared
Recessive traits traits that were hidden
Hybrids results between parents differing in one
or more traits.
The resulting second generation (F2) revealed 75%
tall and 25% short. This provides a ratio of 3
dominant to 1 recessive (3:1)
Cultivated and tested at least 28 000 pea plants,
carefully analyzing seven pairs of seeds for
comparison, such as shape of seed, color of seed,
tall stemmed and short stemmed and tall plants
and short plants.

Seven Traits of the Pea Plants

that Mendel Studied

Mendels Principles

Rule of Unit
Character

Each organism has two

alleles for each trait
Alleles

- different forms of
the same gene
Genes - located on
chromosomes, they control
how an organism develops

Law of Dominance
One factor in pair may mask the
expression of the other.
When pure parents with
opposite traits are mated, the first
generation shows only one trait
(dominant). The other trait (recessive)
is hidden.

Law of Segregation
The

two alleles for a trait

must separate when
gametes are formed.
A parent randomly passes
only one allele for each trait
to each offspring.

How did segregation occur? Mendel suggested that during the

formation of the reproductive cells (pollen & eggs), the tall and short
alleles in the F1 plants were separated from each other. Hence, a
gamete (an egg or sperm) contains only one factor being in another
gamete.

Law of Independent
Assortment
The

genes for different

traits are inherited
independently of each
other.

Fundamental of Genetics

Alleles different copies or forms of a gene

controlling a certain trait
Heterozygous if the two alleles for a trait are
different (Aa). Means pure.
Homozygous if the two alleles for a trait. Means
hybrid.
Phenotype - the way an organism looks

red hair or brown hair

Genotype - the gene combination of an organism

AA or Aa or aa

Monohybrid Crosses and the

Punnett Square
First

cross used by Mendel.

A cross of one trait.
Punnett square an easy
way to determine the
possible combination of
genes in

Female Gametes

Male Gametes

Ss

Ss

Ss

Ss

F1 genotype: heterozygous tall

F1 phenotype: all tall

Gg

Gg

Gg

Gg

Figure 1. Punnett Square showing F1 from a cross

between homozygous yellow (GG) and homozygous
green (gg).

Dihybrid Crosses (Two Factor

Cross)

Dihybrid Cross or Two-factor Cross a genetic

cross which involves two sets of traits.

Figure 1. Dihybrid Cross

Figure 3. Possible Gene

Combination

SS = tall
ss = short
GG = yellow
gg = green
Figure 4. Results of Dihybrid
Crossing

 Figure

2. Cross two Ss dihybrid plants

(SsGg x SsGg).
After meiosis, each gamete will contain
only one seed-height gene and only one
color gene.
Figure 4. Using the Punnett square we can
now determine the possible combinations
of the 16 offsprings. A count reveals tallyellow, tall-green, short-yellow, and short
green to be present in a ration of 9:3:3:1.

INCOMPLETE DOMINANCE

Incomplete dominance is a form of intermediate

inheritance in which one allele for a specific trait
is not completely dominant over the other allele.
This results in a combined phenotype.

In cross-pollination experiments between red and

white snapdragon plants, the resulting offspring
are pink. The dominant allele that produces the
red color is not completely expressed over the
recessive allele that produces the white color.

Withincomplete dominance, a cross between

organisms with two different phenotypes
produces offspring with athirdphenotype that is
ablendingof the parental traits.

CODOMINANCE

Codominancerefers to a relationship between two

allelesof a gene. It occurs when the contributors of
both alleles (genes) are clearly visible and do not
overpower each other in the phenotype. This also
means that the genotype is heterozygous.
Resulting in offspringwith aphenotypethat is
neitherdominantnorrecessive.
The "recessive" & "dominant" traits
appeartogetherin the phenotype of hybrid
organisms.
Withcodominance, a cross between organisms
with two different phenotypes produces offspring
with athirdphenotype in which both of the parental
traits appeartogether.

Sources
Capco, Carmelita M., et. al. (1996). Biology. 2nd edition. Phoenix Publishing House Inc. Quezon
City.
http://www.nndb.com/people/015/000083763/
http://www.detectingdesign.com/gregormendel.html
http://www.zephyrus.co.uk/gregormendel.html
http://www.scribd.com/doc/33912353/Psychology-Genetics-Gregor-Mendel
http://www.scribd.com/doc/12648686/Mendels-Laws-of-Heredity
http://bio1151.nicerweb.com/Locked/media/ch14/pea.html
http://bio1151.nicerweb.com/Locked/media/ch14/14_01PeaPlantCharacters_T.jpg
http://www.bio.miami.edu/~cmallery/150/mendel/c14x9incomplete-dominance2.jpg
http://biology.about.com/od/geneticsglossary/g/incompletedom.htm
http://www.hobart.k12.in.us/jkousen/Biology/inccodom.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Codominance

Reported by:
TAER, Sofia C.
BSPSYCH - 2

The
End