Genetics Science Test Seventh Grade

"Heredity"

"The passing of traits from parents to offspring."

"Genetics"

"The study of genes, genetic variation, and heredity in living organisms."

"Gamete"

"A reproductive cell that contains half the genetic material of an organism."

"Fertilization"

"The process where two gametes fuse to form a new organism."

"Trait"

"A characteristic or feature of an organism, often determined by genes."

"Gene"

"A segment of DNA that contains the instructions for a specific trait."

"Allele"

"Different forms of a gene that can exist at a specific locus."

"Gregor Mendel"

"The father of modern genetics, known for his work on inheritance patterns."

"Dominant"

"An allele that expresses its trait even in the presence of a recessive allele."

"Recessive"

"An allele that only expresses its trait when two copies are present."

"Codominance"

"A genetic scenario where both alleles in a heterozygote are fully expressed."

"Incomplete Dominance"

"A genetic scenario where the phenotype is a blend of the two alleles."

"Sex-linked traits"

"Traits that are associated with genes located on sex chromosomes."

"Carrier"

"An individual who has one copy of a recessive allele but does not express the trait."

"Homozygous"

"Having two identical alleles for a particular gene."

"Heterozygous"

"Having two different alleles for a particular gene."

"Genotype"

"The genetic makeup of an organism, represented by alleles."

"Phenotype"

"The observable physical or biochemical characteristics of an organism."

"P generation"

"The parental generation in a genetic cross."

"F1 generation"

"The first generation of offspring from a genetic cross."

"F2 generation"

"The second generation of offspring, produced from the F1 generation."

"Probability"

"The likelihood of a particular genetic outcome occurring."

"Meiosis"

"A type of cell division that produces gametes with half the number of chromosomes."

"Mitosis"

"A type of cell division that results in two identical daughter cells."

"Chromosomes"

"Structures within cells that contain DNA and genetic information."

"Body cells"

"Cells that make up the tissues and organs of an organism, containing two copies of each gene."

"Homozygous Dominant"

"An organism with two identical dominant alleles for a trait (e.g., TT)."

"Homozygous Recessive"

"An organism with two identical recessive alleles for a trait (e.g., tt)."

"Punnett Square"

"A diagram used to predict the genetic outcomes of a cross between two parents."

"Multiple Alleles"

"A situation where more than two alleles exist for a genetic trait, such as ABO blood type."

"Sex-linked Genes"

"Genes located on sex chromosomes, often affecting traits like colorblindness."

"Patterns of Inheritance"

"Different ways traits can be passed from parents to offspring, including dominant/recessive, codominance, and incomplete dominance."

"Probability in Genetics"

"The likelihood of a particular genetic outcome occurring in offspring."

"Red-Green Colorblindness"

"A common sex-linked trait that affects the ability to distinguish between red and green colors."

"Gene expression"

"The process by which information from a gene is used to synthesize a functional gene product, often influenced by environmental factors."

"Genetic disorders"

"Health conditions caused by abnormalities in genes or chromosomes."

"Karyotype"

"A visual representation of all the chromosomes in a cell, used to identify chromosomal abnormalities."

"Pedigree"

"A diagram that represents the familial relationships and inheritance patterns of a specific trait across generations."

"Down Syndrome"

"A genetic disorder caused by the presence of an extra copy of chromosome 21."

"Recessive trait"

"A trait that is expressed only when two copies of the gene are present."

"Dominant trait"

"A trait that is expressed when at least one copy of the gene is present."

"X chromosome"

"One of the two sex chromosomes, which carries genes that can influence sex-linked traits."

"Y chromosome"

"The sex chromosome typically found in biological males, paired with an X chromosome."

"DNA mutations"

"Changes in the DNA sequence that can lead to genetic disorders."

"Environment"

"External factors that can influence gene expression and overall phenotype."

"Generational skipping"

"A pattern in inheritance where a trait is not expressed in every generation."

"X-linked gene"

"A gene located on the X chromosome, often affecting males more than females due to their XY chromosome composition."