Mendelian Genetics

Mendel’s Discovery of the Principles of Heredity

Gregor Mendel was an Augustinian monk in a monastery in Brünn, Austria-Hungarian Empire (now
Brno, Czech Republic). Mendel chose the garden pea (Pisum sativum) for his experiments.
The pure-breeding peas constituted the parental or P1 generation. All offspring of these crosses
resembled one another. For example, when he crossed pea plants that produced round seeds with pea plants
that produced wrinkled seeds, all the offspring had round seeds.
The offspring of the parental cross are called the first filial (F1) generation. In Mendel’s
experiments, the F1 generation are also called hybrids because they resulted from a cross between
two pure-breeding plants with contrasting traits (for example, pea plants with round seeds crossed
with pea plants with wrinkled seeds).
Table 2. Results of Mendel’s crosses between pure-breeding pea plants
First Filial (F1)
Characters Studied Parents
Generation

Seed shape Round Wrinkled Round

Seed color Green Yellow Yellow

Seed coat color Colored White Colored

Pod shape Inflated Constricted Inflated

Pod color Green Yellow Green

Flower position Axial Terminal Axial

Stem length Long Short Long

When the plants from the F1 generation were crossed with each other or self-pollinated, the offspring (F2 or
second filial generation) were of two types.

Table 3. Results of Mendel’s crosses between hybrid plants

Characters F2 Generation Produced by Observed
Hybrid
Studied Self-Pollinating F1 Hybrids Ratio

Seed shape Round Round Wrinkled 2.96:1

Seed color Yellow Green Yellow 3.01:1

Seed coat color Colored Colored White 3.15:1

Pod shape Inflated Inflated Constricted 2.95:1

Pod color Green Green Yellow 2.82:1

Flower position Axial Axial Terminal 3.14:1

Stem length Long Long Short 2.84:1

Based on the results of his experiments, Mendel hypothesized that there was a factor in the plants which
controlled the appearance of a trait. These factors are what we call genes today.

Since two alternative expressions of a trait (e.g., round or wrinkled seed) were possible, he
hypothesized that traits were controlled by a pair of genes, now called alleles.
Based on the results for the F1 generation, the trait for round seeds is the dominant trait. The trait of
wrinkled seeds, which did not appear in the F1 generation, is called the recessive trait. Its appearance was
either prevented or hidden by the dominant trait. This is now known as the principle of dominance: The
dominant trait dominates or prevents the expression of the recessive trait. A dominant trait is represented by
letter R and a recessive trait represented by a small letter r. A pure-breeding round-seed plant is symbolized
as RR and pure-breeding wrinkled-seed pea plant as rr.
Table 4. Dominant and recessive traits in Pisum sativum (Garden Pea)
Characters Studied Dominant Trait Recessive Trait

Seed shape Round Wrinkled

Seed color Yellow Green

 Seed coat color Colored White

Pod shape Inflated Constricted

Pod color Green Yellow

Flower position Axial Terminal

Stem length Long Short

Law of Segregation

The pair of genes segregate or separate from each other during gamete formation.
A pure-breed, round-seeded parent plant has an allelic combination or genotype of RR, wrinkled-
seeded parent plant has a genotype of rr. Homozygous genotype, a homozygous dominant individual will
produce round seeds while a homozygous recessive individual will produce wrinkled seeds.
An individual with contrasting alleles (a dominant and a recessive allele) for a particular character is said to
have a heterozygous genotype. The expression of the genotype of an individual for a particular character is
referred to as its phenotype.

Knowing the Genotype

1. Self-fertilization Technique
When self-fertilized, homozygotes always produce pure-breeding plants. Thus, round-seeded peas will
breed only round-seeded peas. Heterozygous round F1 peas produce round and wrinkled seeds in the ratio three
round seeds to one wrinkled seed. This ratio (3:1) is called a phenotypic ratio. Self-fertilization enables us to
determine whether an individual is homozygous or heterozygous for a given trait by observing the phenotype(s)
of its offspring.

2. Testcross Technique
Testcross involves a cross between the recessive parental type (rr in our sample cross) and the individual
with the dominant trait but with unknown genotype.

Figure 10. Testcross technique.

Diagramming a Cross
Mendel’s crosses can be recorded in a chart called a Punnett square. The Punnett square helps us to predict
the outcome of a given cross. It allows us to determine the possible combinations of genes in a cross.

Round Round

Rr X Rr

(Male parent) (Female parent)

Figure 11. Punnett square method to solve a hybrid cross.

gametes

R r
gametes
R RR Rr
r Rr Rr
Genotypic Ratio: ¼ RR: ½ Rr: ¼ rr
Phenotypic Ratio: ¾ round: ¼ wrinkled