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6: Chromosomal Inheritance

  • Page ID
    171258
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    • 6.1: DNA is Packaged into Chromatin
      If stretched to its full length, the DNA molecule of the largest human chromosome would be 85mm. Yet during mitosis and meiosis, this DNA molecule is compacted into a chromosome approximately 5µm long. Although this compaction makes it easier to transport DNA within a dividing cell, it also makes DNA less accessible for other cellular functions such as DNA synthesis and transcription.
    • 6.2: Mitosis
      Cell growth and division is essential to asexual reproduction and the development of multicellular organisms. Accordingly, the primary function of mitosis is to ensure that at division each daughter cell inherits identical genetic material, i.e. exactly one copy of each chromosome.
    • 6.3: Meiosis
      Most eukaryotes replicate sexually - a cell from one individual joins with a cell from another to create the next generation. For this to be successful, the cells that fuse must contain half the number of chromosomes as in the adult organism. Otherwise, the number of chromosomes would double with each generation! The reduction in chromosome number is achieved by the process of meiosis.
    • 6.4: Karyotypes Describe Chromosome Number and Structure
    • 6.5: Polyploidy Arises from Changes in Whole Sets of Chromosomes
    • 6.6: Sex-Linkage- An Exception to Mendel’s First Law
      In the previous chapter we introduced sex chromosomes and autosomes. For loci on autosomes, the alleles follow the normal Mendelian pattern of inheritance. However, for loci on the sex chromosomes this is mostly not true, because most of the loci on the typical X-chromosome are absent from the Y-chromosome, even though they act as a homologous pair during meiosis. Instead, they will follow a sex-linked pattern of inheritance.
    • 6.7: Example punnet square for sex-linked recessive trait
      Example punnet square for sex-linked recessive trait.
    • 6.8: X-linked inheritance
      Chromosomal basis of sex determination. X and Y chromosomes, X-linkage.


    6: Chromosomal Inheritance is shared under a not declared license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by LibreTexts.

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