Mendel used mathematics and experimentation to derive major principles that have
ID: 87962 • Letter: M
Question
Mendel used mathematics and experimentation to derive major principles that have helped us understand inheritance. His ideas were totally different than the explanation for passage of characteristics from parents to offspring that was common to his time. List and describe his principles and describe how each contributes to genetic variability. How might biology have be different if his discoveries had not been lost for decades? Be prepared to discuss the significance of Mendel's discoveries to modern biology.
Explanation / Answer
Mendel conducted his experiments on pea plant and stated his principles regarding genetics which are-
1.Each organism contains specific genes which determine their traits.
2.Each trait is determined by two alleles which make up a genotype of an organism.
3.There are two alleles because there are two parents involved in the process of sexual reproduction.Each allele is contributed by a single parent.
4.If a dominant type of allele exists in an organism the phenotype is determined by that dominant allele only.
Similarly on these principles Mendel formulated his laws which are-
1.Law of dominance- If a dominant allele is present it is shown in the phenotype.
2 .Law of segregation- Recessive allele if present does not shows its effect in the first generation but when it moves to the second generation it is represented as a small population.That is recessive gene is not lost and it represents or segregates in the second generation.
3.Law of independent assortment- Genes for different traits assort independently of one another in the formation of gametes.
Had Mendel`s discoveries been lost lasting decades many principles might have not been understood as many explanations of many principles were based on his principles like mutations,variations, linkage, etc.
The science of modern genetics is definitely based on the work of Mendel.Mendel did not know about chromosomes, yet his observations predicted their presence. His careful analyses of monohybrid crosses allowed him to deduce that traits may skip a generation, depending on whether or not they are recessive (i.e., heterozygous recessive alleles are not expressed). In other words, he was able to infer the genetic composition (the genotype) by carefully observing the pattern of the observed character traits (the phenotypes) between successive generations.