Genetics Vocabulary

Front

What is a trait?

Back

A trait is a characteristic or feature of an organism, such as seed shape.

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What does recessive mean in genetics?

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Recessive refers to an allele that is masked when a dominant allele is present; it is represented by lowercase letters.

Front

What is a phenotype?

Back

A phenotype is an organism's physical appearance or observable characteristics.

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What is meant by offspring?

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Offspring refers to a parent's child or children.

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What are phenotypes?

Back

Phenotypes are the observable traits of an organism, such as attached earlobes or hairy knuckles.

Front

What is a dominant allele?

Back

A dominant allele is an allele that expresses its trait even when only one copy is present.

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What is a gene?

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A gene is a segment of DNA that contains the instructions for a specific trait.

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What is an allele?

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An allele is a different form of a gene that can exist for a particular trait.

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What does homozygous mean?

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Homozygous refers to having two identical alleles for a particular gene.

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What does heterozygous mean?

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Heterozygous refers to having two different alleles for a particular gene.