Question

Mendelian Genetics Project: Add imaginary traits to your favorite species (eukaryote only) that are inherited by standard transmission (Mendelian) genetics.

Objectives: Inheritance of genetic information follows certain rules, as illustrated by the principles of alleles that exhibit dominance, recessiveness, incomplete dominance, and codominance. Traits with Mendelian inheritance are expressed in predictable ways and their inheritance can be expressed as probabilities using Punnett squares. To complete this project you are going to choose a favorite eukaryotic species (diploid) and create five imaginary traits that follow the postulates first described by Gregor Mendel.

While you are free to create whatever traits you like you should include five mechanisms of inheritance from the following list as follows: Two traits from the first mechanism, one sex linked trait, the remaining two traits one each of any of the four remaining choices.

            2 Traits defined by dominant and recessive alleles (you must have two of these)

            1 Sex linked trait

            1 Trait with complete dominance, the recessive allele is lethal

            1 Trait with incomplete dominance

            1 Trait with Codominance

            1 Trait with multiple alleles (more than two alleles)

Answer 1

2 traits defined by dominant and recessive alleles:

•Eye color: Blue eyes is recessive to brown colors in cats. Homozygous recessive individuals will express blue eyes.

•Curly hair: Curly hair is dominant to smooth hair. Individuals that are homozygous or heterozygous for the curly allele will have smooth hair.

1 sex linked trait:

•Golden fur color. The golden fur allele is located at the X chromosome and it is recessive. Females must be homozygous recessive since they have two X chromosomes while males only requires one golden allele because they have only one X chromosome

1 Trait with incomplete dominance:

•Size of the tail: In this case, the size of the tail can be small, medium or large. Large is dominant to small but when an individual is heterozygous will have a medium tail.

1 Trait with codominance dominance:

•Blood type: These cats are special, they have two main type blood called Y and X blood type. When a cat is heterozygous, it will be XY blood type.

1 Trait with multiple alleles:

•Shape of claws: These cats also can have four main types of claws: rounded, pointed, square and oval. The gene that codes for the shape of claws posses four alleles and the dominance order goes as follows: rounded>pointed>square> oval.