In: Biology
Mice can have normal tails or ‘bent’ tails. “Bent” is the dominant x- linked allele (B). The normal allele (b) is recessive.
- A normal-tailed female is mated to a bent-tailed male.
- What are the genotypes AND phenotypes of their 3 male and 5 female offspring?
As per the law of dominance whenever 2 alleles are inherited in a heterozyous condition one of them is expressed while the other gets repressed. The one which is expressed is called the dominant allele while the other is called recessive. If a recessive allele is to be expressed it must be in the heterozygous state.
In the above question,
(Male) XBY x (Female) XX ----->
XBX = Bent tailed female
XBX = Bent tailed female
XY = Normal tailed male
XY = Normal tailed male
Thus, all males would have normal tails while all females would have a bent tail.
Another case is where blending of characters occur and the phenotype of the offspring obtained after mating parents with homozygous pure traits is intermediate between the two parental traits. This is called incomplete dominance.
eg: Flower colour in snap dragon. (Upon crossing homozygous red and white parents, pink flowers are obtained in the progeny)
Another case is of codominance where none of the two alleles is recessive. In a heterozygous condition both the allles are expreseed.
eg: Human ABO blood group