Question
Explain the terms Phenotype and Genotype with the help of Mendel’s Monohybrid cross experiment.
Answer
Mendel’s monohybrid cross experiment involved crossing pea plants with one contrasting trait, such as flower color (purple or white) or seed texture (smooth or wrinkled). He observed that the offspring produced in the first generation (F1) had only one form of the trait, which was dominant. For example, when a purple flower pea plant was crossed with a white flower pea plant, the F1 generation had only purple flowers.
Phenotype refers to the physical appearance or observable traits of an organism, such as flower color or seed texture. In this case, the F1 generation had a phenotype of purple flowers.
Genotype refers to the genetic makeup of an organism, which is determined by the combination of alleles inherited from the parents. In Mendel’s monohybrid cross experiment, the dominant allele (P) for purple flowers masked the recessive allele (p) for white flowers in the F1 generation. The genotype of the F1 generation was therefore heterozygous (Pp), meaning that it carried one dominant allele and one recessive allele.
