Given below is a schematic representation of the inheritance of the shape of seeds of garden pea. Answer the questions that follow:
(a) Which is the dominant and recessive allele of the trait?
(b) What does the ratio 3 : 1 in the F2 generation represent?
(c) State Mendel’s Law of Dominance.
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(a) The allele for smooth seeds are dominant over wrinkled seeds which are recessive.
(b) The ratio 3:1 indicates the observed ratio of different phenotypes (observable traits) in the F2 generation. It means that out of every 4 individuals in the F2 generation, approximately 3 individuals will exhibit one phenotype (typically the dominant trait) and 1 individual will exhibit the other phenotype (typically the recessive trait).
(c) Out of a pair of contrasting characters present together, only one is able to express itself while the other remains suppressed. The one that expresses is the dominant character and the one that is unexpressed is the recessive one.