The Hardy-Weinberg Principle

The Hardy-Weinberg Principle

We have been studying evolution (a change in
allele frequency of a population), and how it
happens.
The Hardy-Weinberg principle describes a
stable population where no evolution is taking
place.

What is required in order to have no
evolution within a population?
1. No mutations take place.
2. No immigration or emigration that would
cause gene transfers between separate gene
pools.
3. Only random mating occurs no differential
mating success.
4. No selection occurs.
5. The population must be very large
If these five factors are happening in a
population
No evolution is happening and the population
is said to be in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium.
Since there is no evolution occurring, the
overall number of dominant and recessive
alleles in the gene pool will remain constant
Calculating Allele Frequencies
Two equations are used to calculate the
frequency of alleles in a population. In both
equations:
p = the frequency of the dominant allele
q = the frequency of the recessive allele
(it is assumed that there are only two alleles for
the trait in the gene pool)
Calculating Allele Frequencies
Since there are only two alleles:
p + q = 1.0
This is because the frequency of the alleles
much add to 100%, or 1.0.
Calculating Allele Frequencies
The second equation is:
p
2
+ 2pq + q
2
= 1.0
This equation means that 100% of individuals
in the population will have one of these
genotypes: AA, Aa or aa.
Lets look at each genotype to understand the
equation
Genotypes and Allele Frequencies
If p represents the frequency of the A allele, then the
frequency of the genotype AA will be p x p or p
2
If q represents the frequency of the a allele, then the
frequency of the genotype aa will be q x q or q
2
For heterozygotes, we must allow for either the
mother or the father to contribute the dominant or
recessive alleles. You can think of it as allowing for both
genotypes Aa and aA. So, we calculate the frequency of
the heterozygous genotype as 2pq.
Application to Rock Pocket Mice
Population Genotype Phenotype
Homozygous dominant DD Dark
Heterozygous Dd Dark
Homozygous recessive dd Light
Remember that:
p = the frequency of the dominant allele (D)
q = the frequency of the recessive allele (d)
p
2
= the frequency of DD
2pq = the frequency of Dd
q
2
= the frequency of dd


Sample problem
In a hypothetical population consisting of 100
rock pocket mice, 81 individuals have light,
sandy coloured fur. Their genotype is dd. The
other 19 individuals are dark coloured and
have either genotype DD or Dd.
Find p and q for this population and calculate
the frequency of heterozygous genotypes in
the population.