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Chapter 28: Problem 11

What is polygenic inheritance? Discuss the issues that make polygenic inheritance difficult to study.

Short Answer

Expert verified
Polygenic inheritance is a type of genetic inheritance where a trait is controlled by multiple genes, rather than a single gene, such as skin color, height, and eye color. Studying polygenic inheritance is challenging due to several factors, including the interaction with environment, the large number of genes involved, and the subtle effect size of each gene.

Step by step solution

01

Defining Polygenic Inheritance

Polygenic inheritance is a type of inheritance in which a particular trait is produced by the interaction of many genes, rather than by a single gene. Examples of traits that are determined by polygenic inheritance include skin color, height, and eye color.
02

Examples of Traits Governed by Polygenic Inheritance

Traits such as height, skin color, and eye color are governed by polygenic inheritance. In the case of skin color, numerous genes or alleles at different loci contribute towards the pigmentation of skin. Each allele generally contributes towards the overall phenotype, resulting in a wide variety of skin tones. Similarly, height is influenced by multiple genes, with each one contributing a small effect to the overall height of the individual.
03

Discussing the Complexity of Studying Polygenic Inheritance

Polygenic inheritance is difficult to study due to several factors. These include: 1) The influence of the environment, which can affect how genes express themselves, making it challenging to isolate the effect of genes alone. 2) The large number of genes involved, which makes it challenging to identify all the genes that contribute to a trait. 3) The subtle effect of each gene, which makes it difficult to measure precisely how much each gene contributes to the trait, known as the effect-size problem.

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Most popular questions from this chapter

With regard to heterosis, is each of the following statements consistent with the dominance hypothesis, the overdominance hypothesis, or both? A. Strains that have been highly inbred have become monomorphic for one or more recessive alleles that are somewhat detrimental to the organism. B. Hybrid vigor occurs because highly inbred strains are monomorphic for many genes, whereas hybrids are more likely to be heterozygous for those same genes. C. If a gene exists in two alleles, hybrids are more vigorous because heterozygosity for the gene is more beneficial than homozygosity of either allele.

Two different varieties of potato plants produce potatoes with the same mean weight of \(1.5\) pounds. One variety has a very low variance for potato wieght, and the other has a much higher variance. A. Discuss the possible reasons for the differences in variance. B. If you were a potato farmer, would you rather raise a variety with a low or high variance? Explain your answer from a practical point of view. C. If you were a potato breeder and you wanted to develop potatoes with a heavier weight, would you choose the variety with a low or high variance? Explain your answer.

Give several examples of quantitative traits. How are these quantitative traits described within groups of individuals?

At the molecular level, explain why quantitative traits often exhibit a continuum of phenotypes within a population. How does the environment help produce this continuum?

What is a normal distribution? Discuss this curve with regard to quantitative traits within a population. What is the relationship between the standard deviation and the normal distribution?
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