CORE NOTES
GENETICS
Genetics is the study of inheritance and the variation of inherited characteristics.
TERMINOLOGY GENETICS
Chromatin: network that contains all the DNA in the nucleus
Chromosomes: DNA (chromatin) condensed (tightly wound) and now visible as chromosomes
Gene: small section of DNA (chromosome) that codes for a specific characteristic or protein
Alleles: alternative forms of a gene found at the same place on a chromosome.
Locus: the position of the gene on the chromosome
Dominant allele: An allele if present, is ALWAYS expressed in the phenotype
Recessive allele: An allele that is hidden (overshadowed by dominant allele) in
the phenotype. Can only be expressed(seen) if both alleles are
recessive (or dominant allele is absent).
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CORE NOTES
b B
Phenotype: Physical appearance of an organism determined by the genotype (what we can
see/observe from the outside)
Represented by words eg brown, blue, blonde, red and white etc.
Genotype: Genetic composition of the alleles of the gene for a particular characteristic
Represented by the use of letters eg. BB; Bb and bb
purple
purple
white
Homozygous: Two alleles the same for a particular characteristic (BB or bb)
or
Heterozygous: Two different alleles for a particular characteristic (Bb)
Monohybrid crosses: A genetic cross involving only ONE characteristic, eg colour of fur
Format for representing a genetic cross:
P1 – generation Phenotype ____________ x ____________
Genotype ____________ x ____________
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CORE NOTES
Meiosis
Possible Gametes ___, ___ x ___, ___
Fertilisation (Punnet diagram)
F1 – generation Genotype ________________
Phenotype ________________
Complete Dominance:
The genotypes will always be represented by ONE letter eg. B, but could include upper case B
and lower case b to represent the different combinations for the two alleles.
Possible phenotypes for parents (P1 generation): brown hair and red hair
Possible genotype combinations for parents (P1 generation): BB (homozygous dominant);
Bb (heterozygous dominant)
and bb (homozygous recessive)
eg. B - brown is completely dominant over b - red
Now let’s practice :
In dogs rough hair (H) is dominant to smooth hair(h). A heterozygous rough-haired dog
is mated with a smooth-haired dog.
Represent a genetic cross to show the phenotypic ratio of the puppies. (6)
Step 1: Write down the template for a genetic cross
Step 2: Fill in the (a) phenotype and (b) genotype of the P1 generation
Now complete the cross.
P1 – generation Phenotype: rough hair x smooth hair
Genotype: x
Meiosis
Possible Gametes ____, ____ x _____, _____
Fertilisation
F1 – generation Genotype:
Phenotype:
*Phenotypic ratio is - ________________ : __________________
Next example to practice:
In rabbits, black fur is produced by the allele (B) and white fur by the allele (b).
The table below shows the genotypes of some rabbits.
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CORE NOTES
Rabbit Genotype
1 BB
2 Bb
3 bb
Use a genetic cross to show the percentage chance of rabbits 1 and 3 having offspring with
white fur
Step 1: Write down the template for a genetic cross
Step 2: Fill in the (a) phenotype and (b) genotype of the P1 generation
Now complete the cross.
P1 – generation Phenotype: Rabbit 1 - black fur x Rabbit 3 - white fur
Genotype: BB x bb
Meiosis
Possible Gametes _____, _____ x ____, _____
Fertilisation
F1 – generation Genotype:
Phenotype:
% chance of white fur offspring: ______________