The work of Mendel Flashcards
(5 cards)
What did Mendel record ?
On his garden plot at the monastery in the mid 19th century, Mendel noted how characteristics in plants were passed on from one generation to the next
Why were Mendel’s research important ?
They were published in 1966 and eventually became the foundation of modern genetics
What did Mendel’s work show ?
Mendel had shown that the height characteristics in pea plants was determined by separately inherited “hereditary units” passed on from each parent. The ratios of tall and dwarf plants in the offspring showed that the unit for tall plants, T, was dominant over the unit for dwarf plants ,t.
What three important conclusions did Mendel reach ?
1) Characteristics in plants are determined by “hereditary units”
2) Hereditary units are passed on to offspring unchanged from both parents, one unit from each parent.
3) Hereditary can be dominant or recessive - if an individual has both the dominant and the recessive unit for characteristic, the dominant characteristic will be expressed
Why did it take a while for people to understand Mendel’s work ?
Mendel’s work was cutting edge and new to scientists of the day. They didn’t have the background knowledge to properly understand his fusing - they had no idea about genes, DNA and chromosomes
