Glossary Observable Patterns of Inheritance

Punnett-square Construction of a simple diagram as a way to predict probable outcomes of a genetic

method cross.
allele One of two or more molecular forms of a gene that arise by mutation and code for
different versions of the same trait.
codominance In heterozygotes, simultaneous expression of a pair of nonidentical alleles that specify
different phenotypes.
continuous Of a population, a more or less continuous range of small differences in a given trait
variation among its individuals.
dihybrid cross An intercross between two F1 heterozygotes that are identical for two gene loci; the
dihybrids are offspring of parents that bred true for different versions of two traits.
dominant allele Of diploid cells, an allele that masks the phenotypic effect of any recessive allele paired
with it.
epistasis Interaction among the products of two or more gene pairs.
gene [German pangan, after Gk. pan, all; genes, to be born] Unit of information for a heritable
trait, passed from parents to offspring.
gene frequency Abundance of an allele with respect to others at same locus in a population.
gene locus A gene's chromosomal location.
gene pair Two alleles at the same gene locus on a pair of homologous chromosomes.
genetic disease Illness in which expression of one or more genes increases susceptibility to infection or
weakens immune response to it.
genotype Genetic constitution of an individual; a single gene pair or the sum total of an
individual's genes.
heterozygous [Gk. zygoun, join together] Having a pair of nonidentical alleles at a gene locus (that is,
condition on a pair of homologous chromosomes).
homozygous
For a specified trait, having a pair of identical dominant or recessive alleles at a locus.
condition
hybrid offspring Of a genetic cross, offspring having a pair of nonidentical alleles for a trait.
incomplete Condition in which one allele of a pair is not fully dominant; a heterozygous phenotype
dominance somewhere between both homozygous phenotypes emerges.
independent Mendelian theory that by the end of meiosis, each pair of homologous chromosomes
assortment (and linked genes on each one) are sorted before shipment to gametes independently of
theory how the other pairs were sorted. Later modified to account for the disruptive effect of
crossing over on linkages.
monohybrid Intercross between two F1 heterozygotes that are identical for one gene locus; they are
cross the offspring of two parents that breed true for different forms of a trait.
multiple allele Three or more slightly different molecular forms of a gene that occur among individuals
system of a population.
phenotype [Gk. phainein, to show + typos, image] Observable trait or traits of an individual that
arise from gene interactions and gene-environment interactions.
pleiotropy [Gk. pleon, more, + trope, direction] Positive or negative effects on two or more traits
owing to expression of alleles at a single gene locus. Effects may or may not emerge at

1
 the same time.
probability The chance that each outcome of a given event will occur is proportional to the number
of ways it can be reached.
recessive allele [L. recedere, to recede] Allele whose expression in heterozygotes is fully or partially
masked by expression of its partner. Fully expressed in homozygous recessives.
segregation, [L. se-, apart, + grex, herd] Mendelian theory. Sexually reproducing organisms inherit
theory of pairs of genes (on pairs of homologous chromosomes), the two genes of each pair are
separated from each other at meiosis, and they end up in separate gametes.
testcross Experimental cross to determine whether an individual of unknown genotype that shows
dominance for a trait is either homozygous dominant or heterozygous.
true breeding Of sexually reproducing species, a lineage in which only one version of a trait appears
lineage over the generations in all parents and their offspring.

Websites:

Meiosis Tutorial (University of California at Santa Barbara)

http://tutor.lscf.ucsb.edu/mcdb/tutorial/meiosis/default.htm

Mendelian Inheritance Tutorials (University of Arizona)

http://www.biology.arizona.edu/mendelian_genetics/mendelian_genetics.html