Ch. 3 Extension of Mendelian Genetics Flashcards
(114 cards)
Was Mendel Wrong?
After the rediscovery of Mendel’s Laws of inheritance in the early 1900s, scientists and agriculturists tried to repeat Mendel’s experiments.
Many confirmed Mendel’s finding, but many others did not
Campions petal color and foliage cross showed what?
Did not show a 9:3:3:1 distribution in the F2 generation as Mendel has expected
What test is used to compare the observed and expected values?
Chi-square test.
Is deviation due to change or not?
Chi- square formula
x^2= the sum of (observed - expected)^2/expected
Degrees of freedom
n-1 (group size-1)
How do you compare chi square to critical value?
If chi-square is smaller than the critical value, fail to reject the hypothesis. Means that deviation was due to chance.
If chi-square is larger than the critical value, reject the hypothesis. Deviation is not due to chance.
Basic principles of gene transmission (Mendel’s Laws)
Genes are present on homologous chromosomes.
Chromosomes segregate and assort independently during meiosis and the formation of gametes.
Alleles are transmitted from parent to offspring following Mendelian rules.
Alleles can change phenotypes (what Mendel didn’t know)
Alleles often do not display a dominant/recessive relationship.
Phenotypic ratios are not always 3:1 or 9:3:3:1 as expected following Mendel
What are alleles?
Different versions of a gene.
Impact how a gene is expressed.
If the gene is expressed (translated) into a protein, an alternative allele might be expressed into a different gene product (a different protein).
Different proteins (or the lack of) impact the phenotype differently.
What is the relationship between genes and protiens?
Gene -> protein -> phenotype
Garden pea plant Sbe1 gene (starch branching enzyme)
sbe1 enzyme- catalyzes the formation of highly branched starch molecules during seed maturation.
sbe1 gene has 2 alleles:
R- codes for functional Sbe1 protein
r- codes for non functional sbe1 protein
Garden pea
R and r alleles - nucleotides
R - represents 3500 nucleotides
r - represents 3500 nucleotides plus an additional 800 nucleotides that make the gene non functional
Garden pea
Wrinkled gene
Wild type (R) encodes for Sbe1 - catalyzes the formation of highly branched starch
Mutant (r) is not coding for this enzyme, hence wrinkled seeds lack enzyme activity.
No enzyme activity -> more sucrose -> water moves in by osmosis, causing the pea to expand inside its seed coat. Once seed matures it loses the water as it dries and shrivels. But having been stretched, the seed coat then wrinkles as the pea inside shrinks -> wrinkled appearance.
Wild type allele
The allele which normally occurs in a wild population, most frequently, often (but not always) dominant. Responsible for the wild type phenotype.
Mutant allele
Alternative alleles resulting in altered gene product.
Arises through mutations.
Responsible for the mutant phenotype.
What are the types of mutant alleles?
Loss of function mutation
Gain of function mutation
Neutral mutations
Loss of function mutation
(hypomorphic, amorphic) gene is coding for an enzyme, mutation causes reduction or elimination of that enzyme (null allele) wrinkled gene is an example
Metabolic disorders
Gain of function mutation
(hypermorphic) mutation enhances function of wild type, excess gene product (ex: conversion of proto-oncogenes which regulate cell cycle to oncogenes where regulation is overridden by excess gene product -> cancerous cell)
Neutral mutation
No change to the phenotype, no change to the evolutionary fitness of the organism (use in phylogenetics and population genetics- can see mutations in sequence of DNA)
Genes function to produce polypeptides
Most genes are translated into polypeptide (amino acid chains); alteration of genes causes alteration in the polypeptide chains.
(Mutations in a gene cause alterations in polypeptide chain and that can influence the expression in the phenotype)
Wild type allele produces what type of polypepetide?
A functional polypeptide.
Wild-type phenotype
Recessive amorphic loss of function allele produces?
Does not produce a functional polypeptide.
Server mutant phenotype.
Recessive allele
Recessive hypomorphic loss of function allele produces?
A partially functional polypeptide.
Mild mutant phenotype.
Recessive allele
Dominant negative allele produces?
A polypeptide that interferes with the wild-type polypeptide.
Severe mutant phenotype.
Dominant allele