INTRODUCTION
TO GENETICS
JASMIN A. MUTALIP
GENERAL BIOLOGY 2
Genetics is the study of genes,
genetic variation, and heredity in
organisms. It is an important
What is branch in biology because
heredity is vital to organisms’
evolution.
Genetics
? Study of how genes and how
traits are passed down from one
generation to the next.
Activity 1: Tell
me a Story!
Direction:
Class will be group into 4,
each group will make a story
about the person in the
picture. Any story will be
accepted. Using of cellphone
to research about the person
is strictly PROHIBITED. You
are given 10 mins to do the
activity. The first group to
present their story will have
25 points.
ACTIVITY 2:
MENDEL’S LIFE
Direction: By group , make a
summary of Mendel's early life
and contribution.
Gregor Mendel
(Father of
Genetics)
(1822-1884)
• Gregor Mendel was an
Austrian monk who
discovered the basic
principles of heredity through
experiments in his garden.
Mendel's observations
became the foundation of
modern genetics and the
study of heredity, and he is
widely considered a pioneer
in the field of genetics.
• Gregor Mendel, known as
the "father of modern
genetics," was born in
Austria in 1822. A monk,
Mendel discovered the
basic principles of
heredity through
experiments in his
monastery's garden. His
experiments showed that
the inheritance of certain
traits in pea plants
follows particular
patterns, subsequently
becoming the foundation
of modern genetics and
leading to the study of
Definition of terms:
Genes – a unit of heredity, which is transferred from parent to offspring and is held to
determine some characteristic of the offspring.
Heredity – is the genetic heritage passed down by our biological parents.
Trait – genetically determined characteristic.
Dominant trait – trait that are always expressed when the connected allele is
dominant, even if only one copy of the dominant trait exist.
Recessive trait - recessive traits are expressed only if both the connected alleles are
recessive.
Homozygous – refers to inherited the same version of that gene from both parents.
Heterzygous – inheriting two different versions of gene one from the mother and one
from your father.
Sex linked traits – characteristics that are determined by genes located on the sex
chromosomes.
Pedigree Analysis – was developed to understand the inheritance of genes from
parents to offspring. It was developed as a chart that can represent a family tree along
with the family members and their genetic traits respectively.
Phenotype- detectable expression and its observable characteristic.
Genotype- set of genes and the combination of alleles that it carries or possess.
• Discovered the fundamental laws of inheritance. He deduced that genes
come in pairs and are inherited as distinct units one from each parent.
Mendel’s Law of Heredity are usually stated as:
• 1. The Law of Segregation: Each inherited traits is define by a gene pair.
Parental gene are randomly separated to the sex cells so that sex cells
contain only one gene of the pair. Offspring therefore inherit one genetic
allele from each parent when sex cells unite in fertilization.
• 2. The Law of Independent Assortment. Genes for different traits are
sorted separately from one another so that the inheritance of one trait
is not dependent on the inheritance of another.
• 3. Law of Dominance: An organism with alternate form of a gene will
express the form that is dominant.
• Gregor Johann Mendel was a scientist who is recognized as
the Father and Founder of genetics. Mendel conducted
many experiments on the pea plant (Pisum sativum)
between 1856 and 1863. He studied the results of the
experiments and deducted many observations.
• Thus, laws of inheritance or Mendel’s laws of inheritance
came into existence. Before learning about Mendel’s laws
of inheritance, it is important to understand what the
experiments performed by Mendel were.
Mendel’s
Experiments on
Pea Plant
• Mendel after carefully study
selected the pea plant for
many reasons:
• The pea plants were easy to
grow and maintain
• It has many clearly distinct and
contrasting characters.
• The pea plant is an annual
plant and so many generations
of the plant can be studied in a
short period of time.
• Peas are naturally self-
pollinating but can also be
cross-pollinated.
PEDIGREE ANALYSIS
Similar with family tree, shows information about an inheritance trait passed across generation.
Symbols for identifying common human pedigree:
