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Ch. 4 - Extensions of Mendelian Genetics
Klug - Concepts of Genetics  12th Edition
Klug12th EditionConcepts of Genetics ISBN: 9780135564776Not the one you use?Change textbook
Chapter 4, Problem 36

Labrador retrievers may be black, brown (chocolate), or golden (yellow) in color (see chapter-opening photo). While each color may breed true, many different outcomes are seen when numerous litters are examined from a variety of matings where the parents are not necessarily true breeding. Following are just some of the many possibilities.
(a) black x brown → all black
(b) black x brown → 1/2 black, 1/2 brown
(c) black x brown → 3/4 black, 1/4 golden
(d) black x golden → all black
(e) black x golden → 4/8 golden 3/8 black 1/8 brown
(f) black x golden → 2/4 golden 1/4 black 1/4 brown
(g) brown x brown → 3/4 brown 1/4 golden
(h) black x black → 9/16 black 4/16 golden, 3/16 brown
Propose a mode of inheritance that is consistent with these data, and indicate the corresponding genotypes of the parents in each mating. Indicate as well the genotypes of dogs that breed true for each color.

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1
Step 1: Identify the genes involved and their alleles. Labrador coat color is controlled primarily by two genes: the B gene (with alleles B for black and b for brown) and the E gene (with alleles E for pigment expression and e for no pigment expression, which results in yellow/golden color). The B gene determines black or brown pigment, and the E gene controls whether pigment is deposited in the coat.
Step 2: Assign genotypes to each color phenotype based on the known genetics: black Labradors have at least one dominant B allele and at least one dominant E allele (genotypes like B_E_), brown Labradors are homozygous recessive for the B gene (bb) but have at least one dominant E allele (bbE_), and golden/yellow Labradors are homozygous recessive for the E gene (ee), regardless of B gene alleles (B_ee or bbee). Dogs that breed true for each color are homozygous at the relevant loci: black (BBEE or BBEe), brown (bbEE or bbEe), and golden (any B genotype with ee).
Step 3: Analyze each mating scenario by combining the parental genotypes and using Punnett squares for both B and E genes separately, then combine the results to predict offspring genotypes and phenotypes. For example, in a black x brown mating, if the black parent is BbEe and the brown parent is bbee, calculate the possible gametes and resulting offspring genotypes.
Step 4: For each cross, determine the expected phenotypic ratios by considering the dominance relationships: B > b for pigment color, and E > e for pigment expression. Use the combined genotypes to predict the proportion of black, brown, and golden puppies.
Step 5: Match the predicted phenotypic ratios from your genotype crosses to the observed data in the problem (a) through (h). Adjust parental genotypes if necessary to fit the observed ratios, and clearly indicate the genotypes of the parents and the genotypes of puppies that breed true for each color.

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Key Concepts

Here are the essential concepts you must grasp in order to answer the question correctly.

Mendelian Inheritance and Allelic Dominance

Mendelian inheritance explains how traits are passed from parents to offspring through dominant and recessive alleles. Dominant alleles mask the expression of recessive ones in heterozygotes, affecting phenotype ratios. Understanding dominance relationships among alleles is crucial to predict offspring colors in Labrador retrievers.
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Variations on Dominance

Multiple Alleles and Genotype-Phenotype Relationships

Multiple alleles refer to more than two alternative forms of a gene existing in a population, each potentially producing different phenotypes. In Labradors, coat color is controlled by multiple alleles with a hierarchy of dominance, influencing the observed color ratios. Identifying genotypes that breed true helps clarify which alleles are homozygous and their dominance order.
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Natural Selection

Punnett Squares and Probability in Genetic Crosses

Punnett squares are tools used to predict the genotypic and phenotypic outcomes of genetic crosses by combining parental alleles. They help calculate expected ratios of offspring traits based on allele combinations. Applying Punnett squares to the given crosses allows determination of parental genotypes and consistency with observed color distributions.
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Related Practice
Textbook Question

Two mothers give birth to sons at the same time at a busy urban hospital. The son of mother 1 is afflicted with hemophilia, a disease caused by an X-linked recessive allele. Neither parent has the disease. Mother 2 has a normal son, despite the fact that the father has hemophilia. Several years later, couple 1 sues the hospital, claiming that these two newborns were swapped in the nursery following their birth. As a genetic counselor, you are called to testify. What information can you provide the jury concerning the allegation?

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Textbook Question

Discuss the topic of phenotypic expression and the many factors that impinge on it.

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Textbook Question

Contrast penetrance and expressivity as the terms relate to phenotypic expression.

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Textbook Question

A true-breeding purple-leafed plant isolated from one side of El Yunque, the rain forest in Puerto Rico, was crossed to a true-breeding white variety found on the other side. The F₁ offspring were all purple. A large number of F₁ x F₁ crosses produced the following results:

purple: 4219, white: 5781 (Total = 10,000)

Propose an explanation for the inheritance of leaf color. As a geneticist, how might you go about testing your hypothesis? Describe the genetic experiments that you would conduct.

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Textbook Question

In Dexter and Kerry cattle, animals may be polled (hornless) or horned. The Dexter animals have short legs, whereas the Kerry animals have long legs. When many offspring were obtained from matings between polled Kerrys and horned Dexters, half were found to be polled Dexters and half polled Kerrys. When these two types of F₁ cattle were mated to one another, the following F₂ data were obtained:

3/8 polled Dexters

3/8 polled Kerrys

1/8 horned Dexters

1/8 horned Kerrys

A geneticist was puzzled by these data and interviewed farmers who had bred these cattle for decades. She learned that Kerrys were true breeding. Dexters, on the other hand, were not true breeding and never produced as many offspring as Kerrys. Provide a genetic explanation for these observations.

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Textbook Question

A geneticist from an alien planet that prohibits genetic research brought with him to Earth two pure-breeding lines of frogs. One line croaks by uttering 'rib-it rib-it' and has purple eyes. The other line croaks more softly by muttering 'knee-deep knee-deep' and has green eyes. With a newfound freedom of inquiry, the geneticist mated the two types of frogs, producing F₁ frogs that were all utterers and had blue eyes. A large F₂ generation then yielded the following ratios:

27/64 blue-eyed, 'rib-it' utterer

12/64 green-eyed, 'rib-it' utterer

9/64 blue-eyed, 'knee-deep' mutterer

9/64 purple-eyed, 'rib-it' utterer

4/64 green-eyed, 'knee-deep' mutterer

3/64 purple-eyed, 'knee-deep' mutterer

How many total gene pairs are involved in the inheritance of both traits? Support your answer.

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