HERITABILITY

Flashcards covering key vocabulary related to heredity, genetics, and evolution.

Discrete Variation

Variation in a qualitative trait that falls into distinct categories.

Continuous Variation

Variation in a quantitative trait that falls along a numerical continuum.

Germ Line

The cells that carry genetic information to the next generation, including gametes.

Soma

Somatic tissue or all other cells in the body that do not contribute to the germ line.

Pangenesis Theory

Darwin's provisional mechanism for heredity, suggesting all body parts contribute genetic material.

Germ Plasm Theory

The idea that only gonads contribute genetic material to sex cells and the next generation.

Blending Inheritance

The notion that offspring have traits that are a blend of their parents' traits.

Mutation Theory

Hugo de Vries's idea that mutation is the primary mechanism of evolution.

Law of Segregation

The principle that alleles segregate during gamete formation so that each gamete carries a single allele.

Law of Independent Assortment

The principle that alleles for different genes are inherited independently of one another.

Modern Synthesis

The reconciliation of Mendelian inheritance with gradual evolution via natural selection.

Codominance

A condition in which both alleles contribute to the phenotype without one overpowering the other.

Point Mutation

A mutation that involves a change in a single nucleotide base pair.

Gene Duplication

A mutation that results in the duplication of a gene, which may acquire a new function.

Genome Duplication

A large-scale mutation that involves the duplication of the entire genome, potentially leading to new species.

Homozygous

An organism that has two identical alleles for a given trait.

Heterozygous

An organism that has two different alleles for a given trait.

Phenotype

The physical expression of a trait, influenced by genotype and the environment.

Genotype

The genetic makeup of an individual, represented by alleles.

Allele

Different forms of a gene that determine distinct traits.

Locus

The specific location of a gene on a chromosome.

Gregor Mendel

Famous for an experiment growing peas that created the science of genetics.