3

WHAT DOES MENDELIAN GENETICS

TEACH US ABOUT HEREDITY?
Mendelian Genetics Part I
LEARNING OUTCOMES
By the conclusion of todays laboratory you should be able to:
1. Distinguish between genes and alleles.
2. Use the correct terms to describe the genetic makeup of indiiduals !e.g. dominant" recessie"
homo#ygous" hetero#ygous" carrier$
3. Describe the mechanisms behind inheritance and how genetic traits are passed from one
generation to another.
%. Use &unnett s'uares in order to sole genetics problems.
(. Determine genotypes and phenotypes of offspring resulting from monohybrid !single
hetero#ygous gene$ and dihybrid !two different hetero#ygous genes$ crosses.
). *tatistically test the results of genetic crosses.
INTRODUCTION
+ 'uick look around the classroom" and it should be obious that there is ariation in nature. ,t is this
ariation that dries many biological 'uestions and in fact is why most of us are biologists. -his ariation
may arise through uni'ue eents called mutations that change the genetic material directly or by the
random recombination !shuffling$ of e.isting genetic material contributed by the mother and father at the
time of conception. -his genetic ariability" a conse'uence of se.ual reproduction" assures that at least
some offspring will surie een if enironmental conditions" and hence selection pressures" change.
+t the time /regor 0endel began his studies of genetics in garden peas" two competing theories e.isted
which attempted to e.plain ariation and the patterns of inheritance in organisms. 1ne was called
blending inheritance. -his theory claimed that the traits obsered in the parents blend together to form an
intermediate trait obsered in the offspring. +nother theory called inheritance of acquired characters
claimed that traits present in parents are modified through use or disuse" and passed on to offspring in the
modified form. 2e now know that both of these theories are incorrect. /regor 0endels great
contribution was that through meticulous e.perimentation" he demonstrated that discrete 3particles4 were
passed on from parents to offspring" and depending on the specific nature of these particles" uni'ue traits
were obsered in the offspring. -herefore" 0endel showed that traits were inherited as 3particles4 rather
than by blending. +lthough 0endelian genetics does not e.plain eery type of inheritance" its
applicability is widespread enough that it has remained as one of the most important discoeries of the
biological sciences" and remains in use today. ,t is now referred to as the particulate theor o!
i"herita"ce" and it is credited to /regor 0endel. -his theory obseres that traits are passed from one
generation to the ne.t through discrete particles !genes$ that retain their ability to be e.pressed" een
though they may not appear in eery generation.
5kbhartney" seskandari" p6sperry
#$% &
& BIOLOGY %''L
/regor 0endel !17228177%$ was an +ustrian monk who worked with the common garden pea" Pisum
sativum. 9e conducted his e.periments within a monastery garden in almost complete anonymity. ,t was
only after his death that the results of his e.periments became public.
9is choice to use pea plants was a perfect one. -hese plants are easily cultiated and grow rapidly.
Different arieties hae clearly different characteristics that are true breeding due to the fact that they self
pollinate. &ea plants self pollinate because the reproductie parts of the pants are completely enclosed
within the petals. Because of this self pollinating structure" accidental cross pollination is not possible"
and allows for easy manipulation.
0endel started with 32 different arieties of pea plants. 9e then tracked : traits: seed form and color"
flower position and color" pod form and color" and stem length. 0endel actually employed cross
pollination in his e.perimental crosses. 9e remoed the anthers from one plant !+$" collected pollen
containing male gametes from another plant !B$" and transferred the pollen to the stigma !containing
female gametes$ of plant +. 0endel found in eery case that the ;1 !first filial$ generation was not a
blending of the two traits" but rather only one character was produced. 9oweer" when the ;1 generation
was left to self pollinate" the une.pressed trait reappeared in the second generation !;2$ along with the
trait of the ;1 generation. 0endel termed the trait that appeared in the ;1 generation Do(i"a"t" and the
trait that reappeared in the ;2 generation rece))i*e. 2hen both the dominant and recessie traits are
present the dominant trait will be e.pressed. -he results of 0endels e.periments !-able 3.1$ lead to the
particulate theor o! i"herita"ce" which" as indicated aboe" states that characteristics are passed from
one generation to the ne.t through discrete particles !genes$ that retain their ability to be e.pressed" een
though they may not appear in eery generation.
0endel called the unit of inheritance a 3particle4 because at the time D<+ had not yet been discoered.
-oday we know that these particles 0endel wrote about are +e"e). /enes are particular D<+ se'uences
that code for an amino acid se'uence or protein. =ariability in genes allows us to see differences in the
population. -hese ariations or alternate forms of the same gene are called allele). ,f one allele can mask
the effect of the other" it is considered to be the ,o(i"a"t allele" whereas the allele whose e.pression is
hidden is called the rece))i*e allele. >ecessie traits are only e.pressed if the recessie allele is present
on both of the homologous chromosomes. -his condition is said to be ho(o-+ou) rece))i*e. -he
dominant allele" howeer" is e.pressed if it is present on one or both of the homologous chromosomes. ,f
the dominant allele is present on both homologous chromosomes" it is termed ho(o-+ou) ,o(i"a"t. ,f
the dominant allele is found on one homologous chromosome and the recessie allele on the other" then
this situation is termed hetero-+ou). -he allele combinations that are actually present refer to the
indiiduals +e"otpe.
By conention" capital letters are used to represent the dominant allele and lower case letters represent the
recessie allele. ;or e.ample" the homo#ygous recessie genotype could be designated ?aa?" the
homo#ygous dominant genotype could be ?++? and the hetero#ygous genotype could be ?+a?.
9etero#ygous indiiduals are often referred to as carrier) of the recessie condition. +lthough the
recessie allele is not e.pressed" it is ?carried? by the indiidual and is aailable to be passed on to the
ne.t generation. -he alleles present" along with the dominance relationships inoled" determine what the
indiidual will look like. -his outward manifestation or e.pression of an indiidual@s genotype is called
phe"otpe.
5kbhartney" seskandari" p6sperry
& #$'
LABORATORY # MENDELIAN GENETICS I &
Ta.le #/%0 A )u((ar o! Me",el1) 2or3 2ith pea pla"t)/ The "u(.er o! pla"t) po))e))i"+
each characteri)tic i) i",icate,/
Trait
Ori+i"al Cro)) 45'6 )eco", +e"eratio"
Do(i"a"t 7 Rece))i*e Do(i"a"t Rece))i*e Total
*eed form
*eed Aolor
;lower &osition
;lower Aolor
&od ;orm
&od Aolor
*tem Bength
>ound . 2rinkled
Cellow . /reen
+.ial . -erminal
&urple . 2hite
,nflated . Aonstructed
/reen . Cellow
-all . Dwarf
(%:%
)D22
)(1
:D(
772
%27
:7:
17(D
2DD1
2D:
22%
2EE
1(2
2::
:32%
7D23
7(7
E2E
1171
(7D
1D)%
-hese crosses or matings can be e.pressed in a &unnett s'uare. -he &unnett s'uare can help you to
predict the e.pressed traits by showing that the combinations in each s'uare hae an e'ual chance of
occurring.
>emember that gametes !eggs and sperm$ are formed by the process of meiosis. +s a result of meiosis"
the diploid !2n$ number of chromosomes is reduced by half to the haploid !n$ number" and one of each
kind of chromosome is passed on to each of four daughter cells" the gametes. +fter fertili#ation of the
haploid egg !n$ by a haploid sperm !n$" the diploid number of chromosomes !2n$ is reinstated.
USING A 8UNNETT S9UARE TO DETERMINE OUTCOMES 5OR
MONOHYBRID CROSSES
Cou must first indicate your ariables.
> F round trait
r F wrinkled trait
&1 !parental$: >ound pure breeding plant G 2rinkled pure breeding plant
>> G rr

/ametes > r
;1 generation >r

;2 generation
By e.amining the &unnett s'uare you can see the e.pected
offspring genotypes are:
1>> to 2>r to 1 rr.
-his gies us the e.pected genotypic ratio of 1:2:1" or
1 homo#ygous dominant: 2 hetero#ygous : 1 homo#ygous recessie.
5kbhartney" seskandari" p6sperry
Ga(ete
)
R r
R >> >r
r >r rr
#$# &
& BIOLOGY %''L
2e can translate this genotype into a phenotype by remembering that one > is only needed for the round
phenotype. 2hen we do this we can see that the phenotype should be 3 round plants to 1 wrinkled plant
or 3:1 round:wrinkled.
TRAITS DETERMINED BY SINGLE GENE 8AIRS
,n humans" 22 of the 23 pairs of chromosomes are truly homologous and are collectiely called
auto)o(e). +nd while many inherited traits such as skin color" height" facial appearance" and
fingerprints result from the interaction of many gene pairs located on autosomes !polygenic inheritance$"
others such as facial dimples" white forelocks" and een the length of the big toe are determined by single
gene pairs.
2hen traits are controlled e.clusiely by a single gene pair then 0endel@s Baw of *egregation applies.
-his means that during meiosis and the formation of gametes" one allele of a gene pair will separate from
the other such that half the gametes will receie one allele of the pair" and the other half will receie the
other allele of the pair. ;or e.ample" if an indiidual is hetero#ygous for a trait !+a$" then of the gametes
produced by this indiidual half will carry the dominant allele !+$" while the other half will carry the
recessie allele !a$.
-he arious alleles contained in gametes produced by meiosis and all possible combinations of alleles that
could be inherited by offspring can be illustrated using a 8u""ett ):uare. -he different alleles that could
be contributed by the female !mother$ are listed aboe the bo.es and the alleles within gametes produced
by the male !father$ are listed to the left of the bo.es. -he potential genotypes !and from these the
phenotypes$ of offspring are determined by filling in each bo. by combining alleles from gametes
contributed by each parent. + cross that inoles only a single trait of interest" is called a (o"oh.ri,
cro)).
;or e.ample" the &unnett s'uare below describes a monohybrid cross between a male and female who are
both hetero#ygous !+a$ for a particular trait. 2hen either the male or female produces gametes heHshe
will contribute only one of each kind of chromosome to each gamete" thus half of the gametes should
possess an 3+4 and the other half should contain 3a4.
+ a
+ ++ +a
a +a aa
Aomplete the following series of &unnett s'uares representing crosses between different
parental genotypes and compare your results to genotypic and phenotypic ratios
summari#ed in -able 3.2. ,n reality" crosses between animals !or plants$ rarely match
these predictions perfectly" but they come close especially if sample si#es are large.
+ + a a a a + a + a + a
+ a + + a +
+ a + + a a
5kbhartney" seskandari" p6sperry
& #$;
LABORATORY # MENDELIAN GENETICS I &
Cro)) Ge"otpic Ratio) 8he"otpic Ratio)
AA 7 AA re)ult) i" %<< = AA %<< = ,o(i"a"t
aa 7 aa re)ult) i" %<< = aa %<< = rece))i*e
aa 7 AA re)ult) i" %<< = Aa %<< = ,o(i"a"t
Aa 7 AA re)ult) i" >< = AA0 >< = Aa 4%0%6 %<< = ,o(i"a"t
Aa 7 aa re)ult) i" >< = Aa0 >< = aa 4%0%6 >< = ,o(i"a"t0 >< = rece))i*e 4%0%6
Aa 7 Aa re)ult) i" '> = AA0 >< = Aa0 '> = aa 4%0'0%6 ?> = ,o(i"a"t0 '> = rece))i*e 4#0%6
-able 3.2 +ll possible genotypic and phenotypic ratios resulting from crosses inoling a single gene pair.
ACTI@ITY %0 CROSSES IN@OL@ING AUTOSOMES
&redictions can be made about future generations" if the genetic make up of a group is known. 2e can
also make inferences about what the genetic composition of the parents had to be for a particular ratio of
traits to appear in the offspring. -o figure these things out" follow these basic steps. !1$ >ead the
problem through and figure out from the gien information what you 3know4 with certainty !this could be
related to symbolism for the trait" or whether an allele is dominant or recessie$. !2$ *ort out the
information by attempting to determine the genotypes for the indiiduals inoled" determining all
possible types of gametes that could be produced by each parent" predicting all possible combinations of
genes that could occur in offspring" and predicting phenotypes from genotypes. ;or e.ample" consider
the following problem.

Sa(ple 8ro.le(0 -he skin and hair of albinos are white. -his condition" called albinism is caused by a
recessie allele !n$ that fails to make the en#ymes necessary to manufacture pigments. + mating between
two normally pigmented people results in 7 children. 1f these" ) are normally pigmented and the other 2
are albino. 9ow many of the children would you e.pect to be hetero#ygous carriers of the albinism
alleleI
Solutio"0 Book first at what you do know from the information proided.
+lbinism is a recessie disorder" therefore the genotypes of the two children
that are albinos must be 3nn4. 1ne of the 3n4 alleles had to hae come from
the mother" and the other 3n4 allele had to come from the father. <ow we
know positiely that both the mother and the father must possess at least one
3n4 allele.
9oweer" the problem also tells us that the parents are normally pigmented
so they must also possess a dominant allele 3<4. -he genotypes of parents
are now established. -he mother must be 3<n4 and the father must be 3<n4.
1nce genotypes of parents are known" the &unnett s'uare may be filled in
and used to predict the genotypic and phenotypic ratios of offspring. <otice
that J !or :( K$ of offspring should be normal and L !or 2( K$ should be
albinos. -his prediction matches the ) normal to 2 albino children !or 3:1
ratio$ in the family perfectly !it isnt always this e.actM$. <ow you are ready
to answer the last part of the 'uestion" 39ow many children are likely to be
carriersI4 >ecall that a carrier is defined as an indiidual who is
hetero#ygous for a particular trait" in this case 3<n4. 2e can see from the
matri. that (D K !or N$ of the children are e.pected to be hetero#ygous or % !N of 7$ children.
5kbhartney" seskandari" p6sperry
#$> &

n

n n n

< n
<
n n n


< n
< < < < n
n < n n n

& BIOLOGY %''L
WHAT IS THE SOLUTION?
1. +n albino man" whose parents are both normally pigmented" marries a normally pigmented
woman. -hey hae one child" an albino daughter. Bist the genotypes of all the persons
mentioned.
genotype of the man OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
genotypes of his parents OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
genotype of the woman OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
genotype of the child OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Aould this couple produce a normally pigmented offspringIOOOOOOOOOO
2hy or why notI
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
2. 9untington@s Disease is a degeneratie brain disorder caused by an autosomal dominant allele
!9$. -he disease begins to manifest itself early in middle age" often after the indiidual has
already produced children. +s the disease progresses" the indiidual loses control oer
moement" speech" reason" and thinking. -here is no effectie treatment or cure" and eentually
full time care is re'uired. *uppose a woman who has no history of 9untingtons Disease in her
family marries a man whose father died of 9untingtons Disease but whose mother is disease8
free. -hey produce a single child. 9oweer" by the time the child is 17" the father has begun to
show early signs of 9untingtons Disease. -he family is deastated. 2hat is the probability that
their child will be stricken with the diseaseI

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
5kbhartney" seskandari" p6sperry
& #$A










LABORATORY # MENDELIAN GENETICS I &
3. ,t happens that the length of the big toe is determined by a single gene pair and that big toes
e'ual to or longer than second toes is the recessie condition !t$. &resuming that your big toes are
longer than your second toes and your fiancP also has long big toes" what are the chances that
your offspring will hae short big toes" i.e. big toes that are shorter than the second toesI
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
ACTI@ITY '0 THE 8RINCI8LE O5 INDE8ENDENT ASSORTMENT0
DIHYBRID CROSSES
,n a second series of e.periments" 0endel studied crosses between pea plants that were different in two
characteristics. +s an e.ample lets look at a cross between one parent who has round yellow seeds and
another whose peas are green and wrinkled. ,f we look back at -able 3.1" you will see that we are
looking at the e.pression of two genes" one for pea shape and another for pea color. ;or pea shape round
is dominant" and for pea color yellow is dominant. -he first generation !;1$ e.pressed only the dominant
traits" all round and yellow. -he second generation !;2$" produced by allowing the ;1 generation to self8
pollinate" produced (() seeds of which 31( showed the dominant traits of round and yellow but only 32
combined the recessie traits of wrinkled and green. -he rest were unlike their parents: 1D7 were round
and green and 1D7 were wrinkled and yellow.
-hese e.periments didnt contradict 0endels earlier findings. ,n fact they confirmed them. ,n order to
show this we must look at the traits independently. *o first lets make a chart of the aboe data !-able
3.3$
-able 3.3
>ound" Cellow 31(
>ound" /reen 1D7
2rinkled" Cellow 1D1
2rinkled" /reen 32
<ow if we separate this data into two charts !-able 3.% and 3.($ looking only at one trait at a time we can
see our original hypothesis of a 3:1 ratio stands up.
-able 3.% -able 3.(
>ound %23 Cellow %1)
2rinkled 133 /reen 11D
5kbhartney" seskandari" p6sperry
#$? &





& BIOLOGY %''L
2hen you look at these results you should see that the traits sorted as if they were in independent plants.
-his illustrates the pri"ciple o! i",epe",e"t a))ort(e"t" which states that members of each pair of
genes are distributed independently when gametes are formed. Because of this principle" it is important
when looking at a study of inheritance to determine how many genes are inoled.
Deter(i"i"+ 8o))i.le Ga(ete Co(.i"atio")
,n order to do a dihybrid cross we first must determine all possible gametes in that cross. 0athematically
we can calculate the total gametes by the formula 2
n
" where n is the number of genes in our cross. ,n this
case we hae 2 genes inoled" so 2
2
Q %R there are % possible gametes. ,f we look at the aboe e.ample
and indicate our ariables:
> F round C8 yellow
r F wrinkled y F green
-hen an indiidual with the genotype >rCy can produce the following gametes:
>C" >y" rC" and ry
+n indiidual with a genotype of >>Cy can produce the following gametes:
>C and >y
5kbhartney" seskandari" p6sperry
& #$B
%. Sho2 all o! the ,i!!ere"t 3i",) o! +a(ete) that coul, .e pro,uce, . i",i*i,ual) 2ith the
!ollo2i"+ +e"otpe)0
a$ +a
b$ Bb
c$ ++
d$ -->>
e$ AcDd
f$ ++Bb
g$ +abb
h$ aabb
i$ AADdee
6$ +aBbAc
LABORATORY # MENDELIAN GENETICS I &
USING A 8UNNETT S9UARE TO DETERMINE OUTCOMES 5OR
DIHYBRID CROSSES
Booking at the aboe e.ample and the ariables we hae already declared" lets create a &unnett s'uare
for the dihybrid cross between the round yellow parent with the wrinkled green parent.
&arent phenotype: >ound" Cellow G 2rinkled" /reen
/enotype >>CC G rryy
/ametes >C ry
;1 generation: >rCy
/ametes >C" >y" rC" ry
;2 generation:
>emember that each cell has a probability of one. 9ere you will see that there are 1) cells. 2hen we
count the genotypes we get
1 >>CC 2 >>Cy 1 >>yy
2 >rCC % >rCy 2 >ryy
1 rrCC 2 rrCy 1 rryy
-his will gie us a genotypic ratio of 1:2:1:2:%:2:1:2:1 for a dihybrid cross of hetero#ygous parents. -o
determine the phenotypes we hae to relate the genotypes to the characteristics represented. 2e find the
following:
8he"otpe A))ociate Ge"otpe/ Total
>ound Cellow >>CC" >>Cy" >rCC" and >rCy 1S2S2S%QC
>ound /reen >>yy" >ryy 1S2Q#
2rinkled Cellow rrCC" rrCy 1S2Q#
2rinkled /reen rryy %
Cou can see that the associated phenotypic ratio for this cross is E:3:3:1.
5kbhartney" seskandari" p6sperry
Ga(ete) RY R rY r
RY >>CC >>Cy >rCC >rCy
R >>Cy >>yy >rCy >ryy
rY >rCC >rCy rrCC rrCy
r >rCy >ryy rrCy rryy
#$C &
& BIOLOGY %''L
WHAT IS THE SOLUTION?

(a. +ssume fur color and eye color in cats are due to simple dominant genes" with black fur being
dominant and white fur being recessie" and brown eyes being dominant and green eyes being
recessie. 2hat would the genotypes and phenotypes of both the ;1 and ;2 generations if we
crossed a black cat with brown eyes !homo#ygous for both traits$ with a white cat with green eyes
!homo#ygous for both traits$I
(b. Using the same characteristics outlined in (a" what are the e.pected genotypes and phenotypes for
the ;1 generation if we cross a black cat with brown eyes from the ;1 generation from (a with a
pure breeding white cat with green eyesI
(c. Using the same characteristics outlined in (a" what are the e.pected genotypes and phenotypes for
the ;1 generation if we crossed a pure breeding black cat with green eyes with a pure breeding
white cat with green eyesI
5kbhartney" seskandari" p6sperry
& #$%<
LABORATORY # MENDELIAN GENETICS I &
)/ ,n peas" an allele for tall plants !T$ is dominant oer the allele for short plants !t$. +n allele of
another independent gene !i.e." this gene is not located on the same chromosome as the gene for
tallness$ produces smooth peas !S$ and is dominant oer the allele for wrinkled peas !s$.
Aalculate both the phenotypic ratios and genotypic ratios for the results of each of the following
crosses:
TtSs . TtSs
Ttss . ttss
ttSs . Ttss
TTss . ttSS
:. ,f the dominant allele K is necessary for hearing" and the dominant allele M of another independent
gene results in deafness no matter what other genes are present" what percentage of the offspring
produced by the following cross will be deafI
kkMm . Kkmm
ACTI@ITY #0 STATISTICALLY COM8ARING OBSER@ED DATA TO
ED8ECTATIONS USING THE GOODNESS$O5$5IT CHI S9UARE TEST
Ahi8s'uare is a statistical test commonly used to compare obsered data with data we would e.pect to
obtain according to a specific hypothesis. ;or e.ample" if" according to 0endel@s laws" you e.pect 1D
of 2D offspring from a cross to be male and the actual obsered number is 7 males" then you might want
to know about the ?goodness of fit? between the obsered and e.pected. 2ere the deiations
!differences between obsered and e.pected$ the result of chance" or were they due to other factorsI
9ow much deiation can occur before the inestigator must conclude that something other than chance
is at work" causing the obsered to differ from the e.pectedI -he chi8s'uare test can help in making
that decision. -he chi8s'uare test is always testing what scientists call the "ull hpothe)i)" which states
that there is no significant difference between the e.pected and obsered result.
5kbhartney" seskandari" p6sperry
#$%% &
& BIOLOGY %''L
-he formula for calculating chi8s'uare !
2
$ is:
( )
2
2
H o e e =

-hat is" chi8s'uare is the sum of the s'uared difference between obsered !o$ and e.pected !e$ data !or
the deiation" d$" diided by the e.pected data in all possible categories.
;or e.ample" suppose that a cross between two pea plants
yields a population of 77D plants" )3E with green seeds and
2%1 with yellow seeds. Cou are asked to propose the
genotypes of the parents. Cour hypothesis is that the allele for
green is dominant to the allele for yellow and that the parent
plants were both hetero#ygous for this trait. ,f your
hypothesis is true" then the predicted ratio of offspring from
this cross would be 3:1 !based on 0endel@s laws$ as predicted
from the results of the &unnett s'uare !;igure 3.1$. -o
calculate
2
" first determine the number e.pected in each
category. ,f the ratio is 3:1 and the total number of obsered
indiiduals is 77D" then the e.pected numerical alues should
be ))D green and 22D yellow.

5i+ure #/l/

Chi-square requires that you use

numerical values, not percentages or
ratios.
8u""ett ):uare. &redicted offspring
from cross between green8 and yellow8
seeded plants. /reen !/$ is dominant
!3H% greenR 1H% yellow$.
-hen calculate
2
using the formula" as shown in -able B.l. <ote that we get a alue of 2.))7 for
2
.
But what does this number meanI 9ere@s how to interpret the
2
alue:
1. Determine ,e+ree) o! !ree,o( !df$. Degrees of freedom can be calculated as the number of
categories in the problem minus 1. ,n our e.ample" there are two categories !green and y
ellow$R therefore" there is 1 degree of freedom.
2. Determine a relatie standard to sere as the basis for accepting or re6ecting the hypothesis. -he
relatie standard commonly used in biological research is p T D.D(. -he p *alue is the
probability that the deiation of the obsered from that e.pected is due to chance alone !no
other forces acting$. ,n this case" using p T D.D(" you would e.pect any deiation to be due to
chance alone (K of the time or less.
3. >efer to a chi8s'uare distribution table !-able 3.:$. Using the appropriate degrees of freedom"
locate the alue closest to your calculated chi8s'uare in the table. Determine the closest p
!probability$ alue associated with your chi8s'uare and degrees of freedom. ,n this case !
2
Q
2.))7$" the p alue is about D.1D" which means that there is a 1DK probability that any
deiation from e.pected results is due to chance only. Based on our standard p T D.D(" this is
within the range of acceptable deiation. ,n terms of your hypothesis for this e.ample" the
obsered chi8s'uare is not significantly different from e.pected. -he obsered numbers are
consistent with those e.pected under 0endel@s laws.
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LABORATORY # MENDELIAN GENETICS I &
Step$.$Step 8roce,ure !or Te)ti"+ Your Hpothe)i) a", Calculati"+ Chi$S:uare
1. *tate the hypothesis being tested and the predicted results.
2. /ather the data by conducting the releant e.periment !or" if working genetics problems"
use the data proided in the problem$.
3. Determine the e.pected numbers for each obserational class. >emember to use numbers" not
percentages.

Chi-square should not be calculated if the expected value

in any category is less than 5.
%. Aalculate
2
using the formula. Aomplete all calculations to three significant digits. >ound off your
answer to two significant digits.
(. Use the chi8s'uare distribution table to determine significance of the alue.
a. Determine degrees of freedom and locate that alue in the appropriate column.
b. Bocate the alue closest to your calculated
2
on that degrees of freedom !df$ row.
c. 0oe up the column to determine the p alue.
Ta.le #/A
Calculati"+ Chi$S:uare
Gree"
Yello2
1bsered !o$
)3E 2%1
U.pected !e$
))D 22D
Deiation !o - e$
821 21
Deiation
2
!d
2
$
%%1 %%1
d
2
He
D.))7 2
2 2
H 2.))7 d e = =

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Ta.le #/?
Chi$S:uare Di)tri.utio"
De+ree) o!
5ree,o(
8ro.a.ilit 4p6
4,!6 </C> </C< </B< </?< </>< </#< </'< </%< </<> </<% </<<%
1 D.DD% D.D2 D.D) D.1( D.%) 1.D: 1.)% 2.:1 3.7% ).)% 1D.73
2 D.1D D.21 D.%( D.:1 1.3E 2.%1 3.22 %.)D (.EE E.21 13.72
3 D.3( D.(7 1.D1 1.%2 2.3: 3.)) %.)% ).2( :.72 11.3% 1).2:
% D.:1 1.D) 1.)( 2.2D 3.3) %.77 (.EE :.:7 E.%E 13.27 17.%:
( 1.1% 1.)1 2.3% 3.DD %.3( ).D) :.2E E.2% 11.D: 1(.DE 2D.(2
) 1.)3 2.2D 3.D: 3.73 (.3( :.23 7.() 1D.)% 12.(E 1).71 22.%)
: 2.1: 2.73 3.72 %.): ).3( 7.37 E.7D 12.D2 1%.D: 17.%7 2%.32
7 2.:3 3.%E %.(E (.(3 :.3% E.(2 11.D3 13.3) 1(.(1 2D.DE 2).12
E 3.32 %.1: (.37 ).3E 7.3% 1D.)) 12.2% 1%.)7 1).E2 21.): 2:.77
1D 3.E% %.7) ).17 :.2: E.3% 11.:7 13.%% 1(.EE 17.31 23.21 2E.(E
<on8significant *ignificant
Source: >. +. ;isher and ; Cates" Statistical Tables for Biological Agricultural and Medical
esearch" )th ed." -able ,=" Bongman /roup UV Btd." 1E:%.
). *tate your conclusion in terms of your hypothesis.
a. ,f the p alue for the calculated
2
is p T D.D(" accept your hypothesis. -he deiation is
small enough that chance alone accounts for it. + p alue of D.)" for e.ample" means that there is a
)DK probability that any deiation from e.pected is due to chance only. -his is within the range of
acceptable deiation.
b. ,f the p alue for the calculated
2
is p D.D(" re6ect your hypothesis and conclude that some
factor other than chance is operating for the deiation to be so great. ;or e.ample" a p alue of D.D1
means that there is only a 1 K chance that this deiation is due to chance alone. -herefore" other
factors must be inoled.
-he chi8s'uare test will be used to test for the goodness of fit between obsered and e.pected data from
seeral laboratory inestigations.
9UESTIONS
B/ Book back to 0endels results in the first section of this lab. -est the flower color" pod
color" and stem length to see if they conform to the e.pectations 0endel described.
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LABORATORY # MENDELIAN GENETICS I &
C. Book at 'uestion (a. +ssume we obsered an ;2 generation of 1DD2 black cats with brown
eyes" 2(% black cats with green eyes" 2E7 white cats with brown eyes" and 11( white cats with
green eyes. Does this conform to our e.pectationsI
ACTI@ITY ;0 SIMULATION O5 GAMETE 8RODUCTION AND
5ERTILIEATION
;orm two8person 3couples4 and gie each person one penny" one nickel" and one dime. Bets imagine
each coin is a gene on separate chromosomes" and the two sides of the coin represent alternate alleles.
*elf8test: *ince there are three genes" how many possible gametes can formI
!esignate the follo"ing:
Aoin -ype /ene >epresented +lleles Aoin8side
&enny 9air Aolor
Black !B$ 9eads !dominant allele$
Brown !b$ -ails !recessie allele$
<ickel Uye Aolor
/reen !/$ 9eads !dominant allele$
Blue !g$ -ails !recessie allele$
Dime 9air -e.ture
Aurly !A$ 9eads !dominant allele$
*traight !c$ -ails !recessie allele$
Simulation`
2hen both partners are 3ready to hae a child"4 each person should toss the coins gently on the bench top"
and both members should greet their new 3child4 and record their genotype and phenotype for hair color"
te.ture and eye color in -able 3.) below. <ote we are not including se. of this child for this simulation.
>epeat this ten times" and then add up the number of children that show the dominant phenotype" for each
trait. Does it appro.imate :(K !3H%$ as 0endel predictsI
+lso notice that using three genes in this 3trihybrid cross4 study is 6ust a step beyond the E:3:3:1 for the
dihybrid crosses of 0r. 0endel" but each gene still behaes *U&+>+-UBC from the others.
CHILD F
Hair color0
+e"otpeGphe"otpe
Hair te7ture0
Ge"otpeGphe"otpe
Ee color0
Ge"otpeGphe"otpe
%
'
#
;
>
A
?
B
C
%<
=
Do(i"a"t
phe"otpe
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-able 3.7. 1ffspring phenotypes and genotypes resulting from 1D coin tosses.
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