5.3 Mendelian Genetics key vocabulary

allele

different variations of a gene

dihybrid cross

cross between 2 genes with 2 alleles each

dominant

allele expressed in phenotype

genotype

genetic makeup of an organism

heterozygous

having 2 different alleles for a gene

homozygous

having 2 identical alleles for a gene

hybridization

mating different individuals > offspring posessing traits from both parents

law of segregation

each gamete carries one allele for each gene

monohybrid cross

cross between 1 gene with 2 alleles

pedigree

family trees - track inheriance of traits over generations

phenotype

expressed, physical characteristics of an organism

punnet square

predicts probability of offspring inheriting specific genotypes or phenotypes

recessive

masked trait - expressed if both alleles are recessive

reciprocal cross

crossing parents with sexes reversed > determine inheritance (autosomal, sex linked, cytoplasmic)

test cross

crossing dominant genotype with homozygous recessive > determine unknown genotype