UNLOCKING TERMS

GENETIC TERMINOLOGY

•Trait - any characteristic that can be

passed from parent to offspring.
•Heredity -passing of traits from
parent to offspring
•Genetics- is the study of heredity
GENETIC TERMINOLOGY

Punnet Square- Used to help

solve genetic problems
GENETIC TERMINOLOGY
• Alleles - two forms of a gene (dominant
& recessive)
• Dominant -stronger of two genes
expressed in the hybrid; represented by
a capital letter (Example: R)
• Recessive -gene that shows up less
often in a cross; represented by a
lowercase letter (Example: r)
GENETIC TERMINOLOGY

•Genotype- gene combination

for a trait (e.g. RR, Rr, rr)
•Phenotype - The physical
feature resulting from a
genotype (e.g. red, white)
 What are 3 types of genotypes?
• Homozygous dominant = 2 dominant
alleles
–Example: BB
• Homozygous recessive = 2 recessive alleles
–Example: bb
• Heterozygous = 1 recessive, 1 dominant
–Example: Bb
(“Homo” = same, “Hetero” = different)
FATHER OF GENETICS
Gregor Mendel
 What is an
allele?
•A version of gene
Example:
There is a gene that controls eye
color. One allele is for blue eyes.
Another allele is for brown eyes.
 Processing Piece:
1) There is a gene that controls hair color. What do
you think two different alleles for this gene might be?
How many alleles for each gene are in every cell?
• Haploid cells (like gametes) only have one allele for
every gene, because they only have one set of
chromosomes.
• Diploid cells have 2 alleles for every gene,
because they have 2 sets of chromosomes.
 What is a dominant trait?
• A trait that always shows up if an allele for it
is there.
• Represented with capital letters.
• Example: B = brown eyes
 What is a recessive trait?
• A trait that only shows up if there are no
dominant alleles present
• Represented with lower case letters.
• Example: b = blue eyes
What is phenotype?
• Physical traits
• Example: height, hair color

What What
is genotype?
is genotype?
• The alleles in your DNA
 What are 3 types of genotypes?
• Homozygous dominant = 2 dominant
alleles
–Example: BB
• Homozygous recessive = 2 recessive alleles
–Example: bb
• Heterozygous = 1 recessive, 1 dominant
–Example: Bb
(“Homo” = same, “Hetero” = different)
What is the probability of having a boy and
a girl baby?
•Mom (XX) Dad (XY)
Genotype:
Phenotype:
Probability:
SAMPLE PROBLEM
• Complete the punnet square below that shows a cross
between two cats. In cats, the gene for short hair (H) is
dominant over the gene for long hair(h).

• What percentage of the offspring above are likely to have a

homozygous recessive genotype?