Question

Difference between Epistasis and Complementation including examples

Answer 1

Epistasis:

• Epistasis :used to describe a number of phenomena, including the functional relation between genes, the genetic outcome of mutations acting within the same source of genetic pathway, and the statistical deviation from additive gene action.

An example of epistasis is the interaction between hair colour and baldness.

Complementation:

• Complementation means that two different sources of genetic information (generally, different gene loci encoding proteins or RNAs of different function) together in which each provide something the other lacks.

Complementation Test: Example of a complementation test. Two strains of flies are white eyed because of two different autosomal recessive mutations which interrupt different pathway in a single pigment- producing metabolic pathway. Flies from Strain 1 have complementary mutations to flies from Strain 2 because as they cross the offspring are able to complete the full metabolic pathway and thus have red eyes.